Apple of Eve
by eggsandmarshmallows
Summary: While Gaea is rising, another problem occurs. It starts in Japan, where a girl named Eve Masahiro gets attacked by a Minotaur. Who is she, anyway? What is going on now? Whole New characters and one twisted sidestory to the Heroes of Olympus. COMPLETE
1. Prologue

Author's Note: Greetings! This is my first ever Fanfiction of The Percy Jackson/ The Heroes of Olympus Series. Hope it is good enough! Anyways here are some things you must take note of before reading...

1.) Disclaimer: I don't own The PJO and The Heroes of Olympus Series.

2.) I only own the following characters: Eve Masahiro, Hideki Masahiro, Rook the Rapping Satyr, Rip Gracey, and Carl the Minotaur. Other characters shown are owned by Rick Riordan, my friends, or they existed from Greek Mythology.

3.) The fanfiction is clearly fictional. Certain places and characters are the pigment of my own imagination and may not be involved with reality. Certain events, characters, and places that may match current or past events, are extremely coincidental.

That is all. Enjoy!

-eggsandmarshmallows

APPLE OF EVE

"_We may eat of the fruit from the trees of the orchard; but concerning the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the orchard God said, 'You must not eat from it, and you must no touch it, or else you will die.'_ " - Eve, Genesis 3:2-3 (NET version)

PROLOGUE

_1995, Harvard University, Cambridge Massachusetts_

It was a beautiful autumn's afternoon at Harvard University. The cool breeze explored the campus, and dry multi-coloured leaves danced along the wind. The sun was about to rest, and the colour of the youthful sky turned to hues of pink and purple. It was a lovely afternoon; the perfect moment to tell the man you love that he was a father, and you had to leave the child with him.

Hideki Masahiro, a Harvard Professor of the Archaeology Department, was in this very predicament. He happens to be single, mind you.

As you can see, he came to Harvard to educate future leaders. It has been his greatest dream to influence the most intelligent student who has ever walked the Earth. Yes, education was his passion.

But then, he fell in love.

Things got quite messy, and his lover suddenly disappeared when things were just starting to become too good to be true. This scarred him for months, of course. But after that period of great depression, the bundle of joy arrived, alone. He assumed the mother could not take care of her, so he decided to take the child in for a while, and find an adoption agency later. Little did he know that the Furies attacked him and tried to take the baby. That's when his lover came to the rescue. Obviously, this was all strange to him. Sure, there were times when he can see those creatures from afar, but he had no idea they could actually attack (Yes, he could actually see them. Actually, he's seen a lot of creatures that were all supposed to exist in the world of Greek mythology)!

Well, his lover somehow defeated them all- single-handedly. Then there she stood, tall and proud, but her face was filled with hesitation and uncertainty. Suddenly, she tells him that he was the father of that very child, which leads us back to this awkward scenario under the autumn trees.

The professor could not help but stare at the healthy infant. She was female, and what a lovely girl she was! She had almost all of his features. Her hair was as black as charcoal, and her skin was milky white. The most distinctive feature she ever had were those lovely pair of deep grey eyes. She got this from her mother, obviously.

The mother is now telling him that she is leaving this baby to him. Of course, Hideki had to react violently and shove the child away. His dark-haired lover had no choice but to tell the complicated truth about her life. When she did, it left him tongue-tied. In fact, it left him completely breathless.

What was the inconvenient truth, you say? My, you are not going to believe it either. His lover is actually Athena, the goddess of wisdom. Crazy, right?

Hideki didn't know what to say, or how to react. He was not sure if he should be angry or be upset. But for some reason, he believed her. Wherever he went, he saw strange creatures that were like pegasi, Furies, or hellhounds; even before he met Athena. He just thought his love for Greek mythology just overwhelmed him too much!

Now, he has a child, who was a demigod and she was not just any demigod. She was the daughter of the goddess of wisdom! This peaceful infant may bring a great impact to this world! That's what Athena believed, too. Without question, he agrees to take in the child. He knew he was out of his mind, but he started to wonder what this girl would become.

"Very well, Hideki. But this favour is absolutely conditional." the goddess warned.

"And what would those conditions be?" questioned he.

"You must leave Harvard. Our child is not safe here. Actually, she is not safe in this country, at all."

"Athena... you're telling me to just throw my career- _my life_ away."

"... It is the only way for the child to be safe."

"...I can't believe I'm_ actually_ doing this."

"Please! I don't want anything to happen to you, or our daughter. It's more... logical if you two go far away from here." Athena pleaded, but Hideki was unsure. Where could he go? What sort of job would help in raising a child?

Athena then handed him over a white envelope. Without hesitation, Hideki took it and looked at it intently. "What is this?" he asked as he started opening it. When it was unlocked, it was revealed that the envelope contained two plane tickets. The tickets said there would be a flight going to Japan, seven hours from now. It seemed very clear: Athena wanted him to go home.

"It's the only perfect place where you can be safe." Athena managed to say. This afternoon definitely made Hideki speechless. First, he found out that he's a father; and then he learns that his first love was a goddess; and finally, she arranged a flight for him without his consent, and told him that it was for the best.

"please, Hideki" Athena begged once more. "... Yo-"

"Say no more, Athena. I'll go." The Asian professor interrupted her, with a stern tone.

The goddess' stormy grey eyes glistened. "Really?"

"She's my daughter, too. If you don't want to take care of her, fine. I'm doing all of this just for the sake of my daughter. That is my ONLY reason."

"Hideki, please... it's not that I want to care for her. I'm an Olympian god. I-"

"I get it." He interrupted once more, closing his jet black eyes. " You have a _reputation_ to protect."

"Please, don't take it the wrong way, I'm only doing this to protect you. I love you, Hideki."

"Only to protect me, huh? What about her?"

The goddess' gaze fell on the sleeping child. Hideki could not tell whether or not she even cared for the child. Her face looked unreadable and neutral, as always. "Well, I believe she would be a great individual." Was all she said.

Disappointed with her response, Hideki sighed and stood up from the bench, cradling the baby in his arms. "Right, sure. Anyway, I got to pack since I have a flight tonight." And he walked away.

"Wait!" Athena said out loud.

Hideki turned and gave his lover an exasperated look. He didn't understand her at the moment, and he intended not to. _Why can't you take care of her? Will you even bother playing the role of a mother in her life, Even though you're an Olympian goddess? Did you even claim her as your own?_ Hideki wished he could ask those questions to Athena, but he assumed that they won't matter at all. So he decided to ask,"What?"

"Well, you see... I haven't actually named her yet. I was wondering if you could." Hideki looked away in disbelief. _You must be joking. Do you even love your own daughter?_

"Actually, I thought of the perfect name." he said.

"What is it then?"

"...Eve."


	2. Chapter 1: Six Questions

_15 years later, Shibuya Japan_

_If you raised this number to this variable then… this prophet was cursed with blindness due to….. afterwards, you multiply this number to…. Zeus took the heavens, Poseidon ruled the seas and, Hades was tricked and had the….. the square root of the number thirty-six is…. The gods enjoy drinking nectar and ambrosia…._

Ugh, it was so hard to concentrate.

I tapped my mechanical pencil and stared down at my notebook. Only one more problem to go, I said to myself. This was what I get for reading Edith Hamilton's book of Greek Mythology all night; my brain cells became obsessed with everything I learned from the book, to the point I daydreamed and…..never mind.

My name is Eve Masahiro, and I am fifteen years old. I was in a deserted classroom, finishing up my schoolwork for the day.

The reason for doing so is that I fell asleep during Math class, again. I have trouble sleeping, you see. As much as I enjoy studying, I can't help but give in to the world of slumber during school hours. Now, this extra work was the price I had to pay.

Aside from my insomnia, I have a lot of psychological disorders. Like my front-to-back...or back-to-front dyslexia, for example. Because of this, I had no choice but to read some words backwards. I also have ADHD, but it usually acts up when I'm scared, intimidated, excited, or whenever I engage myself into something.

But these problems never hinder me from opening my textbook. I love learning things, especially history. It's almost like gossiping, only you talk about older stuff.

My brain finally tweaked, and I started scribbling my solution onto the notebook. The moment I was done, I held my notebook high and grinned. "I'm finally done!" I said in relief, without realizing that my voice actually echoed throughout the classroom. I just shrugged, grabbed my bag, and started heading home. I was very excited to finish reading my book at home.

In case you haven't noticed, I've got no friends to walk home with. Well, I don't have_ any_ friends actually. My classmates would never hang out with a broad-fore headed nerd like me. Yes, I am being bullied for my wide forehead. I am known as the "billboard" of my school. It actually started when I was in middle school. That's why I maintained my full bangs; they helped me conceal my billboard of a forehead. But for the past ten years of my life, I knew I had to brush those insults off my back and move on. After all, I have a father back home who cares about me.

A smile suddenly appeared along my mouth, as I board on the train that would lead me home. My father is not only a History professor in our community college, he was also my best friend. Obviously, I got my love for history from him. We did lots of stuff together. Whether it was Christmas, or our birthday (our birthdays comes consecutively), we always celebrated occasions together. He would even tutor me or show me new things. Moreover, I looked up to him. He was such a gentle and intelligent individual. I was even glad that I resembled him more. I got his black hair, the shape of his nose and ears, his thin mouth, his long eyelashes, thin eyebrows, and his pale complexion. I was pretty much like a female version of him. Only, my temper was much shorter than his.

When I got down to my stop, I started walking down the street. I passed by a lot of posters promoting certain colleges and universities across Japan. Then I remembered that I am now a senior (I started studying early) , and my high school life would come to an end, five months from now. My desired college and course? Well, I've always wanted to take a major in history. But I wanted to attend Harvard University.

That's right; I wanted to go to the university where my father used to work. Investigating all of my father's old files, portfolios, and paperwork from Harvard made me fascinated by its prestigious and educational background. The question is, will my father allow it?

He quit teaching at one of the best schools in the world. I'm sure there was an explanation behind it.

The only theory that I could come up with was that it was the same place he met my mother. I don't know how he'll handle in returning into such a nostalgic yet painful place. I was worried for my father, but I was also worried that he won't let me go. I really wanted to go to Harvard!

Finally, I reached home. I knew right then and there, that I had to tell him what I wanted.

As I began walking towards the simple tatami home, I took a huge breath. I was going to graduate soon, and I knew that I wanted to pursue college. I want a major in history, and Harvard is the university I wanted to go to. I'm just paranoid about how he's going to react.

"I'm home." I called out, as I removed my school shoes. (note from author: the following dialogues are spoken in Japanese.)

"I'm in the kitchen!" he responded. He was usually at the kitchen at this hour, preparing snacks and tea for both of us.

I slid the kitchen door open (yes, slid. it's a slide door), and the first thing I saw was my father's gentle smile. "Welcome home, Eve-san." he said. (note: older Japanese men address younger girls with the honorific, -san.)

I managed to smile back. "Thanks, _otou-sama_." (note: otou-sama- father in Japanese)

"Snacks are ready. Could you help me with bringing the tea to the garden? I was thinking of having our afternoon snack there."

"Sure thing." I agreed and took the tea set outside.

It was a peaceful afternoon. The thing is, I had no idea how to start the conversation about my future in Harvard. It's not that my father always gets angry with me. He is actually quite the opposite. He is very overprotective of me, and would never let me go out that much. I'm just worried that I might upset him. The only times he scold me is whenever I ask or do something that usually involves the word, 'Harvard'.

I couldn't Even look at my father. I was afraid that he might notice my disturbed expression. I found myself constantly gazing at the mini garden that my father and I created a couple of years ago.

Everything became nostalgic, all of the sudden. When I was around two, the first book I ever read was a book about flowers. I may be a nerd, but I absolutely adored flowers. Cherry blossoms were my ultimate favourite. My father noticed this, and he suggested that we should plant a garden, together. Then that's how it came to be. We made a lot of memories by just constructing that simple garden. We usually go there whenever it is our birthday, or whenever we feel like camping out.

Unfortunately, my father noticed that my head were on the clouds, and decided to start the conversation.

"Well, in a couple of months, you'll be graduating." he said.

I nodded. I could've sworn I heard myself gulp.

"Have you thought of pursuing college?"

I nodded again, feeling beads of sweat forming at my nape.

"Ahh, what course do you have in mind?"

"H-history" I managed to say.

He looked at me, approvingly." Ahhhh... very nice..." he said, sipping his tea. "Have you thought of a college you wanted to attend?"

Here it comes. "Y-yes..."

"Oh... what will that be...?" Oh, boy.

I started gripping my collar. "Promise you won't get mad..?"

His approving face slightly changed to uncertainty. "Uhmm... sure."

"I... I want to... I want to take Harvard!" _There I said it! _I wanted to add.

He spat out his tea, and looked at me like he has been slapped on the face. "... H-harvard? But... that's in America."

"I know... but there is such a thing as studying abroad, _neh_?"

"But, are you willing to take such a..._ risk_?"

"I've seen your past paper works, father. Harvard happens to be the_ only_ school that caught my attention."

"What about the schools here? Aren't they good enough?" This is the part wherein my father persuades me out of my decisions.

I pursed my lips. " I didn't say that. It's just that-"

"Why don't you try it here?"

"Well, it's Harvard that I really like..."

"_Are you sure?"_

"Of course I'm sure. Look, I understand that you don't want to go back there. But it's been a long time ago, so please forget about it."

"No. You are _not _going to Harvard." Now I could feel the temperature in my body rising to my ears.

"Why not?" I said, trying to maintain my composure.

"Because we can't afford it right now." Since when does he use that excuse?

"Then I'll work part-time." I defended

"No, it's too dangerous."

I was becoming pissed off, now. "Why does everything have to be risky for you, _otou-sama_? Not everything in this world is dangerous!"

"_You just have no idea, Eve-san_!" That was the first time he raised his voice at me in almost three years. Last time he did was when I learned about Harvard. Every time he hears the school's name, his face tightens. He looked at me like I was going to die, which seemed crazy.

"Of course I don't! That's because you never let me try!" I yelled.

"Trust me, Eve, you wouldn't want Harvard. The students there are not worth interacting with."

"I don't think that would be a problem. I don't even talk to my own classmates." Well, it was true.

"But you're not going to Harvard, or any school abroad. That's _final_." Now that made my heart shatter, my ears heat up, and my eyes teary, all at the same time.

"_But why?"_ I almost shrieked.

He sighed and massaged his temples. He looked at me blankly, and gave me his usual excuse whenever I could not get the things I want. "Because I said so."

I stood up and stormed to my room.

I've never felt so frustrated in my entire life! The only thing irritating about my father is that he won't give me a straight answer, especially to the questions that I'm dying for. No matter how hard I tried in pestering him with questions, he won't give me a concrete reason why he disapproves of Harvard, the BEST school in the whole world ; and most of all, he won't not tell me why he keeps me in a cage!

What is it about the world that is so dangerous? Doesn't he trust me? Doesn't he believe in me? Instead of supporting me like any normal parent, he deprives me from the outside world as if I was a _wanted target_! Just thinking of it makes me feel completely infuriated!

(O u O)

Hours had passed, and my anger was slowly subsiding. I was listening to music of Bach, and I was clicking on the official site of Harvard.

Obviously, it kept saying how awesome the curriculum is, and how students manage to become successful individuals. Looking at the pictures made me feel pretty upset. Then I heard a knock on the door.

"Eve-san! I have your dinner." It was my father.

"Not hungry," I groaned. But he still went in my room, anyway. I sighed, shut my laptop down, then I formed an Indian-sit position as my father slowly sat on the bed beside me and handed me a small bowl of miso soup. I accepted it, and silently started to sip. We were completely silent for a long time.

Eventually, I broke the silence.

"Look, I'm sorry for my behaviour a while ago. It's just that you would nEver gIve me a chance." I said, putting my miso soup aside.

"I'm sorry, too." he said, gently. "It's just that I don't think it's the right school for you."

"Just tell me one thing, and I will back off, promise."

"Okay, then. What do you want to know?"

"The reason you don't like Harvard... has something to do with my mom, am I right? If yes, then why?"

It became silent once again. My father just looked at me with those gentle eyes of his. After fifteen years, I just noticed that the colour of his eyes was the only trait that I didn't inherit. He had gentle jet black eyes, while I had intense eyes of stormy grey. I must've got it from my mother, I thought. My mother...

Honestly, I had no idea who she was. To me, she was a mystery. A history that I would never fully understand. All I know was that she disappeared, that's all.

Father wouldn't tell me anything about her. I assumed that she was a touchy subject. Whoever she was, he must have loved her so much that... it hurt.

"Yes, it does." he said, shakily. "I met her there, you see."

"I know that. Now tell me why... why did it hurt?" Now that was two questions. Well, actually I asked three. But it didn't matter; he owed me the truth, no matter how unfair I seemed.

He was beginning to hesitate.

I turned to him, my heart yearning for information. Information about my mother. I sighed. "Please... you can tell me. After all, I'm your daughter."

He looked back at me and smiled. "You remind me of her a lot; you even got her beautiful grey eyes."

I shut my eyes and shook my head. "Don't avoid the subject. Just tell me. Let it all out if you have to."

"Well..." he started. "She's like _magic._ She just appeared out of nowhere. What really caught my attention was her intelligence, and her spirit. She just the type who won't give up, you see. As time passed by, we fell in love. Just when everything seemed to be perfect, she disappeared just like that. Then you came along."

"What? Sorry, I don't get that last part. She left, then _I_ came?" Four questions.

"It doesn't make sense, I know." he chuckled. "Several months had passed since she left, then you came in a basket. You came along with a note from her. It said that she couldn't care for you, and she entrusted you to me."

"So why did you leave Harvard then?" Five questions.

"Well... I met her again... after your arrival... She really meant it when she said that I had to raise you, properly. So I quit my job, and flew back here." He flew _back _here? I thought in disbelief.

"Why couldn't she... raise me?" Six questions.

"...She can't, Eve. She just can't." he said, giving me a sad smile.

I knew right then and there that I couldn't just stay mad at him. He was my father, and he will always be. He threw his career away just so he could care for me. I must say, that was pretty noble, and I am glad that he did that. If it weren't for him, then I would be a total goner. If my mom couldn't take me in, I would've died in a dumpster.

However, the thought of my father carrying the burden of raising a child himself, also made me mad. Why couldn't my mom take care of me, and bother my dad for it? What sort of urgent business did she have to attend to? Why did she have to run away from me? I couldn't possibly ask my father about it, since he had enough of talking about my mom.

"Is that all you want to know?" he asked. He sounded like a child asking his mom if his "bubu" is gone.

"Yeah, pretty much." I said, casually. "Because of that, I know what college I want to go to."

"Really?" his eyes widened.

I smiled and nodded at him. "Uh-huh. I want to attend that prestigious university at Tokyo." I said as I handed him a brochure.

As he skimmed through the brochure, I could tell right away that he already approved of it. When he was done, he gave me his usual smile and a pat on the head.

"I'm proud of you, Eve." he said, as he started heading for the door.

"Thanks, _otou-sama."_ I managed a smile. Even though I wasn't able to get what I want in the end, it felt good to see him smile again. But the thought of him still controlling my life like this felt uncomfortable in the gut.

He kept that gentle smile on until he completely closed the door.

I sighed, still not satisfied with my father's answer. I still wanted to go to Harvard, and my parents' love story did not seem to be the exact reason for me not to attend there. Throughout the night, my thoughts shifted to Harvard, then to my mother. I felt anger and curiosity; what was she like? Was she smart too? Why did she leave us?

I tossed and turned in my bed, realizing that there was a lump on the bed. I grunted and reached for the unknown object behind me. Turns out, the one that was causing my tosses and turns was the book that I've been fantasizing about; _Greek Mythology_ by Edith Hamilton.

I had no urge to continue it. I just… stared at it.


	3. Chapter 2: Tragedy

_Three months later..._

After months of studying and hardwork, I finally got in.

Yup, you guessed it; I was finally accepted to the university in Tokyo! I've never felt so happy in my entire life!

I couldn't help but grin throughout the entire trip home. I couldn't wait to tell my father, either! He would be so proud of me!

But when I reached my house, I noticed that the front door was open. Then I sensed that something was not right.

When I got inside, I had a strong feeling that someone else was in the house. I assumed that it was a thief, since my dad possessed a lot of antique items. I started to worry about him. The house was too quiet, and I couldn't hear any noise from the kitchen. As much as I wanted to call out to him, I was frightened that the intruder would hear me.

I continued walking slowly around the house. So far, nothing unusual showed up around the halls, and my father was still nowhere to be found. I even saw that father's antique pair of _sai's_ were no longer in its display case. Strange, I remembered father warning me not to touch them. It's either he's using them right now to ward off someone, or the thief took it. I honestly hoped that it was the latter.

Suddenly, I heard something break from my room.

I crept towards my bedroom door, being very silent. Luckily, the door was slightly open, so I had a chance to peak in who was messing up my room. The moment I took a look, I could not believe what I saw.

It was a _Minotaur_. You know? The half-man, half-_bull _organism in Greek mythology?

It sounds insane, I know! A creature, which you usually hear in ancient textbooks, was actually going through my underwear drawer. I thought that I was seeing this because I was too exhausted from studying too much. I pinched myself as hard as I could, and the Minotaur was now looking through my closet. It was official, the beast wasn't a hallucination.

I was too busy staring at it, that I did not realize that my step on the wooden floor caused it creak out loud. This noise made the Minotaur turn to where I was. My eyes widened, and I Immediately ran. As I began running head on, I heard my bedroom door been knocked down, and huge footsteps were getting louder by the second. I took a left, and entered my father's office.

I locked the door, and immediately blocked it with one of my father's bookshelves. Then I hid under my father's desk, hoping that the Minotaur won't even bother trying to open the door.

Unfortunately, I already heard it meddling with the doorknob. I seriously doubt that the bookshelf could hold him. Sooner or later, it was going to knock it down, like what the cops do on criminal shows. There was only one thing to do: escape through the window and call for help. To make my situation seem much worse, the Minotaur managed to break the door down.

The beast breathed heavily, and its footsteps shook the floor as it was searching around the room. The only way to escape through the window was to create a distraction. If only I knew what could easily catch a Minotaur's attention! Then suddenly, I had a brilliant idea.

I slowly opened one of the desk's drawers, looking for something hard to throw. So far, I managed to grab a puncher. I carefully peaked at what it was doing. It was currently digging its head in one of the file boxes, looking for something. I also noticed that the door was opened, which was good. I then threw the puncher outside the door. When the creature shot up, I quickly ducked back under the desk. Then I heard its loud footsteps leaving the room until it went to the next hall.

The moment it was gone, I immediately opened the window. Sadly, when I was about to get out, the Minotaur came back. I suddenly froze. What really surprised me that it spoke English.

"Ahh, there you are, _half-blood_." it said_. What did it just call me_? I thought, weirdly. "Looks like you're going to have to come with me."

As it was about to approach me, I knew I had to distract it again, fast. But what could I use? Then I noticed the ballpoint pen clipped to my skinny jeans. I grabbed it, and threw it at the Minotaur like some kunai. The pen managed to hit its eye, and it bawled in pain. With that, I managed to slip outside and run. "Hey! Come back!" it yelled. I ignored it and kept running.

Thoughts ran through my mind. What was it doing here? Why was it after me? Why did it call me a half-blood? What was a half-blood? Most of all_, where was my father_?

When I reached the garden, I saw something very horrifying to my eyes: my father, unconscious on the ground, with the missing _sai's _and blood splattered all over.

I slowly walked towards him, feeling the blood-damped grass beneath the soles of my brown combat boots. The moment I reached his body, I knelt beside him, still hoping that it was not him that I was seeing. Whether I like it or not, I was too late.

"There you are!" the Minotaur boomed. "I was looking everywhere for ya!"

I just said nothing.

"Oh so I accidently crushed your father, my bad!" _Keep on talking, I dare you!_ I thought as I gritted my teeth.

"Now look at the bright side. At least you're free from parental control, right?" I had enough. I took the _sai's_ from the ground, and stood up.

"You dare duel me? Let's see if you can _hero._" First half-blood, now hero? What's up with that?

"Now... prepare to die!" it began to charge.

Everything happened so quickly. First thing I know is that the Minotaur began charging me, and the next thing I knew, my_ sai's_ were already at its torso. Then in the blink of an eye, the Minotaur was gone.

I didn't know how, but one thing's for sure: it was over.

Then I turned towards my father, who was barely breathing now. I knelt beside him once again and that's when the moon finally came out. Its light splashed across the garden. With that, I could see his blood-stained face, clearly. My face hardened, my fists were clenched, and my teeth gnashed at the thought of my father fighting alone and dying in vain.

Why didn't I show up early to help him? How can fate be this cruel? Once again, irritating questions filled my head until I broke down and mourned.

My father is gone, and he is never coming back.


	4. Chapter 3: Three Visitors

I stayed by my father's side all throughout the night. I cried until I ran out of tears, and I fell silent. I couldn't feel anything but supreme anger. I was so enraged that I could actually brutally destroy the garden that surrounded me. At five in the morning, I got a tablecloth from the kitchen and covered my father with it. Afterwards, I uttered a short prayer for him. However, I couldn't pray that peacefully. I couldn't accept the death of my father, for he didn't deserve any of this! The Minotaur wanted me. Not him! It wasn't fair... why did he have to get caught up in this?

This entire boiling wrath came to a pause when I heard a noise coming from the inside of our house. I immediately wielded my _sai's_, preparing for the worse. I glared at the darkness of the house with full intensity. Soon, the sliding door slowly opened. I was about to charge till I heard a voice.

"_Ahh! I think I smell blood_!" a male voice shrieked.

"Ssh! The Minotaur might hear you!" warned a girl.

"You mean Carl? Psshaaw! Quiet or not, were ready for him!" a hoarse voice scoffed. Wait, Carl... the Minotaur?

"Ugh, either way, I sense something outside," said the girl. "On my signal, we jump outside, ok? On three... one... two..."

"Wait!" the boy interrupted.

"What is it now?" the girl asked, irritated.

"Should we go outside on three? Or _after_ three?"

"I said on three!" the girl scolded.

"Fine! Fine! I didn't know! Sheesh!"

The girl sighed. I could tell she's been dealing with this dude for the past fifty-eight hours (or probably more than that). Whoever they were, I had to deal with them right away. What more could they take away from me?

Then the girl muttered a curse…. in Greek. "Ok..." she started again. "On three... one...two..._three_!" And by three, they all came out in fighting stances. But they suddenly fell at ease when they saw me. I even relaxed myself. For some reason, I had a strong feeling that they meant no harm. I could also tell that it wasn't me they were exactly looking for.

To my surprise, they were all just kids like me. The boy had dirty blonde hair, and his bangs swayed to one side. They were even long that I nearly failed to notice his hazel eyes. He was wearing rather feminine-looking clothes. He wore a brown vest underneath a pink polo and awfully tight dark skinny jeans. To top it all off, he wore designer shoes. Though seeing him in _metrosexual_ clothes and holding a _javelin_ was definitely a disturbing sight.

Next was the other guy. Well, he was sort of a guy. He had chocolate brown skin and wore a green cap and a green jersey. He seemed normal at the upper part, but at the lower part... not so much. Underneath that "hip hop" look, were... brown fur and hooves. He looked like... a_ satyr_.

Finally, there was the girl, who was much simpler. She had messy blonde hair, and- to my surprise-stormy grey eyes. She had a dagger at her hand, but what was really disturbing about her was her shirt. Not that it contained anything obscene, but it had "CAMP HALF-BLOOD" imprinted on the front. Could it be that she's also a half-blood. Who were they?

"It's a... girl." the metrosexual guy said, smiling at me.

"Don't even think about it, Rupert." the girl warned.

"I told you, call me Rip!"

"Whatever, Rupert _Gracey._" she teased, rolling her eyes.

"Now that's not funny, Annabeth!" enraged the Gracey kid, but the Annabeth girl ignored him and approached me. When she did, I immediately backed away.

"It's ok, I won't hurt you." she reassured. She looked trustworthy, but I couldn't take any chances. It's not that I don't understand English; in fact, I knew the language very well. It's just that I don't intend to trust these strangers... no matter how... innocent they seem. I gave them scowl, hoping they would just leave me alone. Sadly, they didn't. The three visitors stared at me like I was some kind of unknown creature.

"Uhmm, Annabeth.." the satyr said. "I don't think she understands English."

"But I think she got attacked by Carl..." Annabeth reasoned, and turned to my father's grave. "And I think were too late." Rip said something in Greek. For some reason, I understood what he said. He said a curse. It creped me out; I never studied the language my entire life, yet here I am suddenly understanding it.

"Guys, let's face it. Carl is not here, yo." the satyr said. I was right; they were looking for the Minotaur.

"But, Rook...what about her?" Annabeth asked. "... I have a strong feeling that we shouldn't leave her behind. We should take her to camp." _Camp? What camp_?

"Are you crazy? _What if she isn't one of us_?" Rip warned. "Our cover could be blown." Not too soon, they began discussing among themselves. I felt like a little kid witnessing a fight between parents. Rip and Rook the satyr thought that bringing me to "camp" wasn't the best idea, but Annabeth wanted me to go. She could sense that I encountered the Minotaur and that I could be the one that a prophecy was talking about.

I was not able to understand what else they were saying. However, I had a feeling that the camp they were referring to was the one on Annabeth's shirt. Yes, Camp Half-Blood.

"C'mon, Annabeth! How can you be so sure that Carl's been here?" Rip questioned.

"The huge Minotaur footprints, and the nearly demolished tatami home are both dead giveaways, bro." Rook pointed out.

"Oh, right." now Rip felt stupid.

"Well, it's settled. We're bringing her to camp." Annabeth declared. Then they all looked at me like I'm some kind of dog that was supposed to be brought to the pound. I just glared at them, trying to make it apprehensible that I did not want to go with them. When Annabeth tried to get near me, my adrenaline automatically pumped up, and I suddenly slashed her palm with one of the _sai._ She backed off and winced in pain. "You ok?" asked the metrosexual kid. She barely nodded.

"I have a bad feeling about this, Chase." Rook said, uneasily.

"That's why our prophecy said we needed a kid of Aphrodite, right?" Annabeth said, turning to Rip. When he looked back, he immediately got the message, and went towards me.

He looked at me in the eye, and I must say, he had the most mesmerizing eyes. _What was I saying?_ I thought. But there was something about this kid that made me feel so... relaxed.

"Go to sleep..." he said, gently. Automatically, my eyes were beginning to become heavy. Then I could feel a yawn coming to my mouth. As he kept repeating the same phrase, I got even sleepier. No matter how hard I tried to resist, his words were just too powerful for me. Soon enough, my world went black.


	5. Chapter 4: Camp Half Blood

I was alone in the darkness, and I could hear something... or _someone_ calling out my name.

_Eve..._

_Eve..._

_Eve..._

_"Who's there_?" I called out, in Japanese.

I kept walking and walking, but none of my surroundings changed. But far at the distance, I saw a light. I ran towards it, but when I finally got there, it turned out that it was not an exit; it was a glowing olive tree. At its branch, lived an owl. Turns out, this creature was the one calling out my name. Instead of the usual "hoot", it was cooed my name.

"Eve... Eve..." it continued to coo.

"So..." I said, this time in English. "It was you."

It stared at me for a while, with its bulging eyes. Sometimes when an owl stares, you tend to freak out. You can't tell whether if it suspicious of you or if it's just plain angry. I guess I'm like the owl in several ways. I usually glare at people, and I always appear like I'm mad at the world. We're both smart, too. After all, the owl is the animal of wisdom.

Just when I was beginning to admire the creature, it started to look up. When I looked at its direction, I saw a shining aegis at the top of the tree. The owl then turned towards me, and its eyes were telling me to get it. Without question, I climbed up the tree. Trust me; I don't know why I was taking orders from the owl, either.

When I finally reached at the level where the aegis was, I could not help but admire its ancient detail. It was already old, probably built around 100 B.C. the intricate design was without a doubt, Greek. This marvellous breast place was also adorned with fringes of serpents. When I was about to touch it, it shined even brighter. The light was too much for me to bear, that I nearly went blind. I had no choice, but to close my eyes tight. Then I heard a voice of a... woman. "_You'll be a great hero_." she said, in English.

The next thing I knew, I woke up in a strange room. Everything from the owl to the aegis was all just a bizarre dream.

I sat up and observed my surroundings. It looked like I was in a wooden cabin, and there were a row of beds at each side of the room. There were even trays that contained medical amenities. From that very moment, I knew right away I was in some sort of infirmary. I made a face; I hated infirmaries, they creped me out with its medicines and injections ever since I was four years old. I didn't like their smell that much, either. It made me want to puke, so badly.

When I was about to, I noticed a Ziploc container of... lemon squares, my grey sweater already clean and dry, and my antique pair of _sai's_, all in one bedside table. Looking at these items (minus the Ziploc container), made me remember what happened... to my father. They also made me whisk back to reality. I began to wonder where I was. I suddenly recalled the three strangers, who were trying to bring me to some sort of... camp... could it be I was in it right now? Was I still in Japan? I got up, wore my brown combat boots, grabbed the_ sai's_, and headed for the door.

When I opened the wooden door, I was first welcomed by the sunlight, which I hated. I shoved the weapons to the side of my boots, and I covered my sensitive eyes with my hands. The first thing on my agenda was to find those three. The next thing I was about to do was to demand them to bring me back to Japan.

I finally realized that I was no longer in the country where I grew up. I saw foreigners everywhere, wearing the same orange camp shirt that the Annabeth girl wore. Not only that, the entire place was weird. The cabins were designed in very different ways, humans... that _did not appear normal_ were waving at me from the lake, people were carrying actual weapons, then there was a big house, and it looked like the thorn among the flowers. I was completely overwhelmed by my surroundings that I failed to notice the chariot coming towards me.

The horse, which had..._wings_ on its back, panicked and I was startled. I also hated horses. "What's wrong this time?" a voice yelled. Uh-oh. The horse managed to calm down, but its rider didn't.

When the driver of the chariot came down, I was shocked. She was actually a girl, a bulky one, to be précised. She wore Greek armour over her casual outfit, and she had a red bandana covering her brown hair.

She looked at me, pissed as ever. Not too soon, she grabbed the collar of my white long-sleeved polo. "You've got a lot of nerve interrupting my chariot, punk!" she scolded, gritting her teeth. I just glared at her. She had no right to call me a punk and accuse me like that. I did not even lay a finger on her chariot. But she got even more pissed and pushed me away. "Ya think you're so tough, eh? Well how about a duel?" she challenged. I brushed off the dirt from my clothes, and wielded my _sai's_. I began to sweat, realizing that I didn't know what I was doing.

She snorted. "You think regular metal can beat me? Well this oughta be interesting." she scoffed as she grabbed a bulky sword from her chariot. Before we could even start, I heard a familiar voice calling out. "Clarisse, no!" it was Annabeth.

"Don't even bother. She's really confused right now." the blondie begged.

"Well too bad, Annabeth. She should've thought twice before she could mess with me." scoffed Clarisse, as she grabbed her sword from the chariot. Clarisse, wow... for a bulky girl, she had such an elegant name.

"I'm serious! I don't think she even understands English!" but Clarisse didn't even bother listening. Soon enough, she lunged for me. Without realizing it, I dodged her attack. My eyes widened out of shock. _How did I do that? _ I thought.

Clarisse's charge must have been so strong that she ended up at the other side of the area. She was really pissed, now. She charged at me again and this time, she raised her sword at me. I blocked her move with my _sai's_, and our weapons clashed. As we fought, I was not so sure about how I was attacking. I only took a few _sai_ lessons, but I only learned the defensive moves. This may sound odd, but I had a strong feeling that my ADHD was _helping_ me.

But I got too carried away, and I accidentally tripped. Annabeth kept telling Clarisse to stop, but she did not listen. She raised her bronze sword again, and I rolled away before it could even hit me.

Afterwards, I did a roundhouse move on her. I did not where that came from, but it made Clarisse fall on her back. I was about to nail her, but she kicked my stomach with both of her feet, as she tried to get up. I ended up flying at the shore of the lake. As soon as I got up, she advanced towards me again, but I managed to do a sidestep. She ended up falling at the lake, and I could hear the crowd behind us laughing out loud. Whoever this Clarisse girl was, she sure knew how to draw attention to herself.

Thanks to that distraction, I nearly did not notice her swinging her sword. I managed to duck it, and the metal of our weapons started clashing again. Eventually, one clash made our eyes meet then my mind began to wonder. What kind of camp is this? _Greek warrior camp_? I thought. We were about to attack again, until a blow of a whistle stopped us. We turned to see... a man... with a body of a horse.

Remember how much I hated horses? Yeah, seeing this... _Centaur_ totally scared me. It also shocked Clarisse, too. The moment her tough brown eyes met with the stern look of the centaur, she gulped, and dropped her weapons in surrender. Something was telling me that this _thing_ was actually the leader of this place.

"I tried to warn her, Chiron." Annabeth explained as she rushed to his side. "But she just won't listen." Busted.

"Very well. Clarisse... go and take your chariot back to the stables. You there!" he called out, pointing his finger at me. "Come with me. Annabeth, you too." I gulped. It's not everyday that a horse does that to me.

He noticed how tense and frighten I was. The centaur looked down at me and gave me a mild smile, trying to calm me down. Sadly, it was not working. "Don't worry, half-blood, I won't hurt you. I can help." he reassured.

I could not help myself. Just hearing the word, "half-blood" was beginning to annoy me. I actually spoke up, in English.

"Where... am I?" I managed to say.

This made Annabeth's eyes widened. "You speak English?" she said, out of shock.

"Answer the question. Where am I?" I said, more strictly.

Chiron looked at me, gently. His look reminded me of my father, but I shook that idea off my head. Soon enough, the centaur smiled at me and said, "Welcome... to Camp Half-Blood."


	6. Chapter 5: Need to Know Basis

Okay, I learned three things this morning:

1.) I was no longer in Japan. I was somewhere in Long Island, New York.

2.) I was in a camp for Half-bloods, in other words, demigods.

3.) _I am a demigod._

The third realization was by far, the most disturbing news I've ever received.

I was inside the big house. I saw much weirder things inside. Chiron suddenly turned into a man in a wheelchair, but that made me relaxed a bit. Then I learned a couple of weird things.

Everything in Greek mythology actually existed, and they all moved to western civilization. Also the reason why the camp exists is that demigods become easy targets when they reach their teen years. That's why satyrs go all over globe to look for those demigods and bring them back to camp safely. Finally, demigods have ADHD and dyslexia, but they actually help. How? Well, ADHD helps you in battling. Dyslexia, on the other hand, helps in reading and understanding Greek stuff._ Now that's interesting_, I thought.

Then Annabeth told me that Rook, the satyr from earlier, already buried my father properly. He is searching for Carl the Minotaur at Japan. The news made my face fell.

As soon as the explanations were done, Chiron asked if I had any questions. I actually had one. "What makes you so sure that I'm... a demigod?" I asked, arching my eyebrow. The word tasted like pickles in my mouth. And I hate pickles.

"Well, first of all, you managed to pass our borders; this camp is protected by a void which makes sure no mortal comes in." Chiron explained.

"If I am a demigod...then...that would make my...mother..."I trailed off.

"Yes, if your father was mortal, then your mother is a goddess." Chiron said. _Well that's reassuring_, I thought.

"But you won't know her until she claims you. She'll just have to give you a sign." Annabeth further explained. _Great, now she has to claim me?_ I thought. _Excellent, this whole claiming business makes me feel like a forgotten parcel rather than an abandoned daughter._

"Well, I guess that's all. Annabeth here shall give you a tour." Chiron said. Annabeth nodded and gave a look to tell me to follow her. I reluctantly tagged along.

During the tour, I was not exactly paying that much attention. So far, I knew that the camp can control the weather, the history behind the Golden Fleece, there's a thing called Tartarus, some cabins being honorary, their favourite game was called "capture-the-flag", and that some demigods can go out on quests. But my attention got caught on the battle arena, where two men were fighting.

One had black spiky hair, yellow eyes, and had a rapier on his hand. The other one was sort of dark, that his purple eyes became of distinct feature of his. What intimidated me was his flaming whip.

Annabeth noticed this, and explained. "The one with the rapier is Rain Weathers, son of Zeus. The emo kid is Lucius Winter, son of Hades. So basically, they're both sons of the big three." she said.

"_Big three_?" I asked, with an astonished look.

"Zeus, Hades, and Poseidon." Annabeth explained. "They're brothers and they're really bad at keeping a pact together."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, before the world war, they made a pact that they wouldn't have any more children. Soon, Zeus broke his oath and that's how Thalia Grace came to be." Right... the demigod who used to be a tree and is now a hunter of Artemis, the goddess of hunting.

"It's not just Zeus, though." continued Annabeth. "Eventually, Poseidon and Hades did. My boyfriend, Percy, is the son Poseidon. Nico di Angelo, who now lives in the underworld, is also the son of Hades. However, both Nico and Lucius existed before the world war. It's a long story to explain, though. But Hades is the only god who didn't break the pact." I nodded my head slowly, though I couldn't help but notice the expression on Annabeth's face when she mentioned the name of Percy; he seemed very important to her, to the point of becoming uneasy.

"So much for the pact." I said, smirking.

"Tell me about it, Even my mother thinks it's rather idiotic."

"Your mother?"

"Yeah, Athena. Goddess of wisdom."

"Oh."

Annabeth cleared her throat. "Well, that concludes our tour. Lunch will be around soon, you'll know when you hear the signal. In the meantime, you can take a look around. I have some business to attend to. See ya!" then she left. Soon, I became bored.

I decided to go to the lake and enjoy nature. I liked it whenever I viewed something as breathtaking as this. It reminded me that there was something good left on this earth. Then my thoughts drifted to my father. I suddenly felt anger and depression. Did you honestly think I was going to like it here? Well, guess again.

I abhor this camp. Why? Well, first of all, I was brought here against my will! Secondly, I was mad at the gods, my god parent to be exact. Because of her, _my father is dead_! She endangered his life by _bringing me_ to this world. If I remembered correctly, the gods always ignored their children. If they intend to do just that, then why bother falling in love with mortals? They're just wasting their time! The idea made me so mad that I threw a rock at the lake, disturbing a few naiads.

Being a demigod shattered my father's life and my dreams. I sat on a really huge rock and rested my distraught face on my palms. I was about to pick up a peace of mind, until my alone time was abruptly disturbed by a voice I thought I would never hear.

"Hey there." it was Rip. My fists automatically clenched.

"Aw, come on. I'm sorry for charmspeaking ya. I am the son of Aphrodite after all. Forgive me?" he persuaded. His voice really sounded completely convincing. When I was about to succumb to his command, I shook my head and stormed away.

"I had no choice! Annabeth made me do it!" he called out, trying to go after me. When he grabbed my arm, I violently reacted by turning around and punching him hard on the face. He fell to the ground, and went out cold.

With a knocked out Rip on the ground, I violently exhaled through my mouth and I brushed my hands in victory. Then I heard a horn being blown. That only meant one thing: Lunchtime.


	7. Chapter 6: Escape

My first day in this Camp was such a drag. After lunch, I took a few walks, watched people fighting each other at the battle arena, and I took a few walks again. It was only during dinnertime, that something interesting came up.

Undetermined kids like me had to stay with the Hermes Cabin until they got claimed. Man, was I having the time of my life. The bunch was... well, let's just say they don't stay put like behaved kids.

They constantly kept stealing each other's food, they even took my dinner. At least I was anorexic, otherwise... I didn't even want to think about it. My eyes rolled at their obnoxious behaviour, and they drifted to the Athena Table. My eyebrow arched at the interesting scenario that took place. What was going on? Two blonde kids were playing chess. I'm a nerd and chess is like, my soulmate.

One of the players was Annabeth. Her opponent was a blonde boy who had quite the attitude. The moment he checkmate her, his laughter of pride suddenly boomed all throughout the area. It overcame even the most irritating noise. The boy stood up from his seat and pointed at Annabeth. "Ha!" he scoffed. "It's official! I'm the best chess player of the Athena Cabin! Better yet, the _entire_ camp!"

Annabeth just rolled her eyes. "Get down, Malcolm. You'll make a fool of yourself." she sighed. Unfortunately for her, he did not listen, which made me agitated. For that, I stood up from my seat, reached their table, and sat in front of Malcolm. Random whispering began, and they were all about what nerve I've got for going to another table, even if it was against the rules. A grumpy old man, who was some replacement for the god Dionysus, was about to stand from his seat to get me in trouble, but Chiron gestured him to stay put. I bet he wanted to see what I was up to. My eyes then focused on the flustered Malcolm.

"Game on." I said, with a blank expression. I could tell he was trying his best not to gulp. He gave me his best tough look and started rearranging his chess pieces. I did the same thing. Soon enough, the game began.

For the past thirty minutes, my pawns were almost gone, but his pawns, bishop, and knight were gone. I was looking at the board intently, while Malcolm's hands began to sweat and shake. It was clear to me that he has never lost that much chess pieces, before. He tried his best to keep his chin up, and did his move.

As time passed by, our kings and queens were left standing. But the game consumed a lot more time than I expected. He managed to get my queen, but it cost him his. This became an evenly-matched game, and I did not realize that we managed to draw another crowd, again. I decided to ignore it, and think of a way to get back my queen. Soon, we did nothing but kept moving our kings to the other sides of the board. Eventually, we both had our queens back.

For the past thirteen minutes, we kept moving our pieces. This game was almost nerve-racking as the battle I had this morning. But finally, a loophole came. This left Malcolm in an incredibly tight spot.

It was my turn now. He positioned his queen, wherein he was able to check my king. He just did not realize it was a careless move. His queen was actually left out in the open, where my queen was ready for it. I was able to eat his piece, and chased his king for the next fifteen minutes.

Malcolm tried to revive his queen once more by going back to his side of the board, but I was able to check him. There was no way he could escape. If he kept dragging his king to the other side, my queen would still be able to catch up to it. He was still far from the other side, after all. He let out a heavy sigh, and tipped down his king in defeat. The game was over.

Everyone gasped in awe. However, they didn't go wild like other people would usually do when they watch a baseball game or a rock concert. They just kept on staring at me, with mouths wide open. I sighed, and went back to my table. Then Annabeth caught up to me.

"Hey! That was... _sick_! I don't know what to say!" Annabeth said, flabbergasted._ Please, it was just a chess game. _I wanted to say, so badly.

"Well, you certainly did us a favour." she continued. "After that game, I bet Malcolm will finally shut up about chess. I mean, you know us Athena kids. We hate to lose."

(O u O)

Yup, I couldn't sleep. And yup, I still hate it here.

It was time to sleep, now. The Hermes cabin was completely packed, and it was not only the chorus of snoring that kept me up. It was disturbing the thoughts in my mind.

I was still angry. I may have won one victory for tonight, but that didn't make the anger inside of me, subside. My father was already dead, and he is never coming back. He died all because _I'm a half-blood_. I am not going to college, because my classmates or my professors could actually eat me alive. The fury was itching up in my arms, that I did something unexpected.

I got up from my small bed, wore my grey sweater, and silently tiptoed towards the door.

Annabeth warned me about curfew, but I shook that thought off my mind and took a night stroll at the woods. Strolls usually help in clearing up my mind. Unfortunately, it didn't help this time.

I crossed my arms, and walked aimlessly around the woods. I kept thinking about the things that recently occurred in my life. The attack of Carl the Minotaur, the death of my dad, and me being in this camp. Am I really a demigod? Is my mother actually a goddess? Well, as a person who firmly believes in science, her being some goddess was actually a "good" explanation for her mysterious disappearance.

Then how was I born? Was I born out of her forehead or something? My train of thought was suddenly interrupted by a hoot.

I turned to see that it was an owl.

"Oh it's you." I said, in Japanese. The owl just turned its head, as if it was trying to study me.

I looked intently at the owl's eyes. Then I noticed that I was just not any owl, but it was the owl in my dream.

When I tried to get closer to the tree it was perched, it flew away. "Hey, wait!" I called out, and started following it.

The wise bird flew across the camp. It went pass the entrance, and that's where I stopped.

I looked up to examine the incredibly large pillars of the entrance. Eventually, I began walking towards it. When my foot was about to go out of Camp Half-blood boundaries, a voice stopped me.

"Just where do  
>you think you're going?" the voice called out, firmly. I turned to see that it was none other than... the boy I saw at the battle arena. It was Lucius Winter, the one with the freaky whip.<p>

I immediately wielded my _sai's. I had a great chance of getting out of here, but emo kid here had to foil with my escape!_ I thought, maddened.

"You do realize you're doing something rather idiotic." he smirked.

I just said nothing and braced myself. "What do you want?" I said, in English.

"Trying to make sure that you don't escape. Trust me; I don't know why I'm doing this, either."

"Well, I think you're wasting time."

"...what are you afraid of?"

"... _Your face?"_ I realized that statement totally made him pissed.

"You're going to regret that." he said, as... black stuff came out of nowhere! He shot most of them at me, and I had a bad feeling that if I get in contact with any of them... something terrible might happen.

So I ended up dodging them like a wimp. It was clear that I could not go in close combat with him unless I came up with a distraction.

Out of desperation, I threw one of my _sai's_ at him, and he ducked. I tried to bolt towards the exit. Unfortunately, one of his... black things... caught me by the ankle. I was left dangling like a newly-caught fish.

"Yeah... you are pretty stupid." Lucius said, trying to get up. I tried to get the black thing let go by cutting it with my _sai._ Turns out, another black thing caught my hand, and it caused me to drop my _sai_. "It's useless to resist my shadows." he said, grimly. "You're going to pay for what you've done."

He was right about one thing, though. No matter how hard I tried to struggle, the shadows kept covering me, until I looked like a black chrysalis. When it completely took me over, my world went black….. again.

(O u O)

When I opened my eyes again, I thought I was experiencing a dream. But then I realized it was more than that.

I was at a playground. There were kids playing at the slides and seesaw; some were chasing each other or were playing pretend at the sandbox. No one noticed me, so it was apparent to me that I was invisible in this dream and interfering with other people's business was a definite no-no. But I couldn't help but notice the little girl at the swings. She was the only one there, and her head was down. It was like she was ashamed of who she was. I decided to walk towards her, to get a closer look. When I got there, I couldn't help but think that she almost looked like me when I was five.

Oh wait, that was me.

It all made sense now; I was in one of my childhood memories. I remembered this moment. I remembered how... lonely I was.

I saw myself look up and stare at the children who were kicking sand at each other at the sandbox area. My face was blank, but my eyes were practically screaming, "lonely". I was beginning to feel how I felt during that time, until I nearly gagged at what I was wearing: a frilly pink dress. Oh yes I remember now; my father made me wear it. I shivered at the sight of me wearing it. I hated frilly dresses, especially pink ones.

Despite the horrible attire I had, my five-year-old self stood up and boldly walked towards the sandbox. I wanted to ask those kids if I could play with them. I followed myself, as if I was my own babysitter.

When my young-self greeted shyly, the kids began to point and laugh at me. I was starting to get confused and wondered what they were laughing about. It took me around five minutes to realize that it was my forehead they were laughing at. I didn't have full bangs that time, so my incredibly wide forehead was completely exposed to the world.

Of course, I felt embarrassed and ashamed, so I just silently walked away and pretended that all that mockery did not affect me.

This was the day that "billboard" Eve was born. From that day forward, everyone referred to me as the "billboard", and nothing else. No one even bothered trying to become friends with me. Technically, it was a horrifying memory. So horrifying, I wanted to break something.

Then my surroundings changed. I was at my middle school courtyard; I recognized the uniform the students were wearing. Everyone huddled up in different groups, the game addicts were by the steps of the school, the school belles were at the fountain mingling with the athletes. It was a stereotypical world, and I didn't fit in any group. Not even to the nerds; I guess they were afraid that if they hung out with me, they might get bullied or something.

I went to look for myself, until I found my twelve-year-old self all alone at the bench, eating the bento lunch father prepared for me. I still haven't had my full bangs yet, so the billboard forehead was still out in the open.

I was messing up the sushi with my chopstick, until a paper airplane landed on top of my lunch. I noticed a smile appearing along my mouth. What made me happy, all of the sudden?

Then I saw myself beginning to unfold the paper, with an eager look. The paper airplane was actually a note! I immediately went behind myself to take a look at it. After reading the contents of the note, I suddenly remembered.

I had a crush on a boy named Sakamoto Takeshi during this time. I liked him because he was far different from the other guys. He even helped me pick up my books from the floor, when one of my classmates bumped me on purpose. He was such a great guy, and I remembered wishing that he would notice me. Then... it strangely came true.

During the past three weeks, he kept on sending me letters saying how much he admired me. They all said that I was smart and beautiful. All those lovely letters made me forget about my forehead and I felt like someone finally accepted me for who I was.

The note said that he wanted to meet up with me at the school roof after classes. I remembered how overjoyed I was. My younger self began to look at the school fountain. I looked at her direction, and saw none other than, Takeshi. He noticed me and smiled. He waved at me and I waved back, then I noticed that smile on my face.

I recalled how happy I felt. I was so happy that I finally had a friend who cared less about my forehead. Then I realized that everything was just too good to be true. That's when my surroundings changed again.

I was at the school roof, the place where I was supposed to meet Takeshi. He was already there, staring at the sunset and was waiting for my arrival. The door then creaked behind me, and I turned to see an eager me skipping towards him. I wished that I could stop myself from going near him. You think that this was such a heartwarming moment? Think again.

"Takeshi-kun!" my twelve-year-old said, happily.

"Hey." he said, smiling. I began to notice to there was something about his smile that was...malicious. Sadly, my suspicions were right.

Takeshi came closer to my face. As he was getting closer and closer, I thought that he was actually going to kiss me. Without thinking, I closed my eyes and waited for it.

I anticipated for it, but instead of feeling something on my lips... I felt something on my... forehead.

My eyes suddenly opened as if I was slapped by reality, and the first thing I saw was Takeshi smiling a cruel smile. I felt so confused, and when I touched my forehead, I finally realized that he put a sticky note on it!

At first, I thought it was all a silly joke. I took the note off my forehead and dreadfully read the word, "billboard face", which was written in English, all in capital letters. I then realized that this was more than just a joke. It was a prank. A mockery.

Soon enough, I began to hear laughter, which was getting louder and louder by the second. My classmates were all there to witness this mortifying scene. Not only that, they all had one sticky note, each. For the past ten minutes, they all approached and attached their sticky notes to my forehead.

I just stood there, watching this all over again. I gritted my teeth, wishing I could do something. Instead, I felt like a helpless, pathetic loser. I evoked the words that Lucius winter said earlier.

_"What are you afraid of?"_ He was really letting me have it now.

Once again, the setting changed.

This time, I was in my bathroom. I found myself, ripping the sticky notes off my face (they ran out of space on my forehead, so they continued sticking their notes on other parts my face) and began to cry. I felt stupid for falling for Takeshi!

It was all coming back to me. All that bliss and ecstasy, turned into pain and heartache. That incident nearly convinced me that I did not belong at school and that I will never have friends, all because of this cursed forehead.

I looked at the mirror and looking at my completely crushed face. It was wet with tears of anguish, and I nearly did not detect the razor I was holding in my trembling hands. Yes, I attempted to do suicide.

I placed the razor on my wrist, and I was about to press it to my skin. I was ready, but at the same time, I wasn't. Then from sadness, I precipitously became angry. Why did I allow myself to be tortured like this? Why did I accept all of this suffering? What did I ever do to them?

As a replacement for suicide, I placed the razor on my long black hair, and I trimmed it off. That's when my full bangs came.

I scrutinized my new look at the mirror. Then I decided that this haircut marks my new life. I will no longer trust anyone, other than my father, and I will do everything by myself.

I was glad that this reminiscence came to mind. I had my reason for running away Camp Half-Blood. I thought I conquered my fear, but then apprehended that it still was not over.

My milieu went black again. At that point, I heard a voice and it was saying, "billboard".

In a little while, more voices came, saying that dreadful word in unison. I endeavoured to resist, but it became too much. I covered my ears and I crawled up like a ball.

"E-enough..." I stammered. Strangely, it did stop.

I carefully released my ears and slowly stood up. I felt a hand touch my shoulder. I turned around to see my father.

"_Otou-sama_!" I cried, in relief. I was about to hug him, but he began saying the word I absolutely abhor.

"Billboard." he said, with a blank expression. My eyes widened out of disbelief.

As he kept repeating that word, I stepped back. But he kept taking a step forward, no matter how hard I tried. Soon, all the voices came back again. The next thing I knew, all the kids from the playground, my classmates from elementary till high school, my teachers, Takeshi, and everyone I knew for the past fifteen years were all behind my father.

They were all repeating the word, "billboard" to me. They were all like an army of parrots when they said billboard, continually. I trembled as I tried to run away from them. I ended up tripping and fell to the ground. I did my utmost best to get up, but all of them suddenly became giants and they all surrounded me.

"Please... stop..." I begged, crawled up like a ball, again.

As they kept repeating that very word, that awful word, my father looked at me, just like the owl did earlier. Subsequently, he raised his foot at me, and tried to squash me like a bug.

The last thing I saw was his outsized foot, and the last thing I heard was my scream.


	8. Chapter 7: Quest

I never pondered on the fact that I would wake up again, until I saw a shining light. I thought it was Heaven, but when my vision cleared up, it turned out to be a flashlight. I shut my eyes tight again when the light was beginning to blind me.

"Oh you're awake!" a girl said, as she put the flashlight away. "Sorry, I was supposed to do a check-up on you. I thought Chewy put you on a coma."

"C-chewy?" I groaned.

"I mean, Lucius Winter, my _boyfriend_. Oh! I'm Sophie Wood, daughter of Demeter." she introduced herself. I did not know what to react; I just had a horrible nightmare that seemed like eternity and the first person I saw from my wake is the girlfriend of the man who caused my misery.

"The farm goddess?" I questioned. I did not know what else to say.

"You got it. You must be Eve, the undetermined kid."

"Yeah, I guess."

Just when everything began to fall silent and awkward, a knock came upon the door. Before Sophie could reach for the door, Lucius barged in. Without further delay, I glared daggers at the son of Hades.

"How is she?" he asked, huskily.

"She just woke up." answered the redhead.

Thenceforth, he began to glare at me as well. We started to have a little scowl game for a while, until Sophie sighed and spoke up. "Why are you here?" she groaned.

"I just want to talk to her..._alone."_ he said.

She sighed and tried to look at me with the most placid face she could make. "I guess I'll have to leave you for now, Eve. It was nice meeting you." she said, smiling. She then turned to the emo boy beside her, and gave him a rather austere gaze.

"What?" he asked, exasperated.

"Don't you dare try anything." she cautioned in a scary way.

Lucius just rolled his eyes. "...Whatever." he said. My exhausted grey eyes followed Sophie when she made her exit. When she left, I felt like an abused child being left behind with a violent parent.

I turned to the purple-eyed teenager, at a snail's pace. I lingered for what he had to say. In due course, I spoke up.

"...You're low." I said, with an ascetic look on my face.

Winter raised an eyebrow at my statement. "What makes you say that?" he asked.

I turned away from his glance and continued. "You actually use fears to fight off your opponents. Now that's what I call timidity."

"Well, I only used that move to test you. I must say, you don't have much guts. But you throwing that _sai _was some bold move."

"What do you want?"

"I just want to start over. I apologize if I overstepped. So what do you say_? Friends_?" He extended his hand to me. _Ugh, this was like Rip Gracey all over again_. I thought.

"Why do you want to be friends with me?"

"What's wrong with being friends?"

"You don't look like the type who doesn't even make friends." The expression in his face changed. He had enough.

"Arrrgh!" he hollered. "_You're just so difficult, aren't you?"_

I smirked at his aggravation. "Just deal with it."

Soon enough, he started rolling up his sleeves. "Listen you-"

"I'll take it from here, Lucius." it was Chiron. Emo kid became stunned at the presence of the Centaur and left, straightaway. Being alone with this horseman made me wish that Lucius was already beating me up.

The look in Chiron's eyes was neither petrifying nor soothing. I guess he just wanted to make me feel welcome here; being upset with me was not an option. "I heard from Lucius Winter that you tried to run away." he started off. I just looked away.

The camp director sighed and rolled his wheelchair closer to me. "Look, this camp is the only safest place for the likes of you." he explained. _Likes of me? Now I feel like a total freak. Wait, I'm a demigod. Of course I'm a total freak._

"Running away... is not the wisest idea a demigod should be thinking. I understand that you've been through a lot of hardships, but please understand that you must stay in this camp. If you try running away, certain consequences will happen, and these consequences may affect a lot of innocent people." I gave him a nod.

"Good then," he said, in a much more relaxed way. "Now, in order for everything to remain justly, I'm going to have to punish you. I'm sorry, the other campers have already heard of your violation. If you go out of this cabin unpunished, then it would cause a riot. So it would be quite fair if I gave you a penalty."

(O u O)

Chiron said that he would give me a rather easy punishment. For a girl who's scared of horses, does he think cleaning the pegasi stable was easy for me?

I was already heading for the stables, with a bucket of water each hand. _Of all punishments, why this?_ I thought. When I got there, I slowly entered to see the behaviour of the pegasi. They were all calm, and it made me relaxed enough to enter the vicinity, completely. But as soon as I heard one of them neighing, I flinched and it caused me to nearly fall down flat on the hay. Man, I was such a wimp.

But my father always told to keep my chin up. I grunted, marched at the first pegasus, and started to get to work.

I picked the one that seemed much milder than the others. It was pure white, and its mane was as shiny as silk. It's the fur coat that needed seriously cleaning. Compared to its mane, it looked rough. I grabbed the brush, dipped in the bucket of water, and I sluggishly placed the brush on its coat. When I did the first scrub, the pegasus did not react, at all. I sighed in relief, glad that it didn't panic.

Cleaning the pegasi was actually fine. They were rather serene creatures, and they did not panic, not even once! Then I soon realized that I was speaking too soon.

I was brushing a black pegasi with soap. Afterwards, I thought of hosing the creature down with water, so it would be easier. When I was done doing so, it began to shake the wetness off, and I got myself hosed down as well. It was like giving a colossal dog a bath; though I certainly did not think that horses to even do that whenever they bathe.

After that, I heard someone slowly clapping; it was the annoying Rip Gracey. I groaned and began wringing my grey sweater.

"_Gods_, looks like you're having the time of your life." he teased. I rolled my eyes, and he already knew that we had unfinished business.

"Aw, come on. Can't we start over?" he begged. I kept ignoring him, and tried everything I could to get my punishment done. When I was about to go to the next pegasus, he blocked me.

"Look I'm really sorry for what I did. But could you please quit the silent treatment? I just want to be _friends_." he said, sincerely. _Why me?_ I thought, rolling my eyes. Before I could say something to Gracey, I saw something from the distance. It was the owl from last night.

"Eve, please say something." he begged, beginning to pout. I brushed passed him and went to the owl. When I got there, it flew away. Again.

_"Come back!"_ I called out, running after it.

"Hey! You speak English?" Rip called out, running after me as well.

As I tailed the owl, I began to wonder what it wanted from me, and why was it up... when owls are supposed to be nocturnal. I don't know why, but I had a strong feeling that it was trying to tell me something urgent. Finally, it perched on a tree, and I stopped to look into its eyes again. This time it was not looking at me. Rather, it was looking below. My eyes turned to its line of sight, and to my surprise, there was an unconscious body. It was not a human body, but a satyr's body. I went towards it to have a closer look, and to my surprise, it was Rook. I could tell it was the Satyr I met back at Japan, thanks to the green jersey he wore.

Thankfully, he was still alive. But his breathing was not normal. I was about to help him up, till I spotted something in his hand. I took his rough hand, and obtained what he was holding. It was a small olive green box.

But it was not just any green box; it was the exact box that my father had in a glass case back at home! And Rook managed to take it. What in the world did he want with it? My father bought this at some souvenir shop when he paid a visit to Greece when he was sixteen. He could tell that it was a treasure because nobody has ever been able to open it, before. But still, what does Rook want with it? It was certainly not edible!

I hid the box in my pocket, and that's when Rip managed to catch up.

"Hey.." he panted. "What's up with-Rook!"

He flinched the moment he noticed the unconscious Satyr beside me. He immediately went to his side, and put his arm over his shoulder. "A little help here?" he asked. I took Rook's other arm over my shoulder.

"We have to get him back to camp." Rip suggested. I nodded.

While we were handling him with care, I looked back to take a final glimpse on the owl. But it was gone.

(O u O)

We were in the infirmary with Rook, waiting for him to wake up. Rip was moping about the room, while I just sat there by Rook's side. I was completely dry now, and I was taking a firm grip on the green box. _How in the world did he get this?_ I thought. I looked at Rook's troubled face, and my eyes began to tighten. I had a bad feeling that he was attacked.

Finally, Annabeth came. I returned the box back into my pocket, and focused my attention at the situation at hand. "I heard about Rook! How is he?" she asked, worriedly.

"It's all right, he's now resting." Rip said, reassuring her. Annabeth sighed in relief.

"But... what happened to him?"

"Ask Eve. She was the first one who saw him." Annabeth then turned to me. I sighed, and stood up.

"I just saw him like that." I said. "I examined him a little, and it seems like he escaped from...something."

"Carl the Minotaur?" Rip suggested.

"...Yeah, possible." I said, feeling my face beginning to harden.

"Yes! You finally responded to me!" Rip said, grinning at me. I just ignored him. In a little while, Rook woke up.

"Wha...where am I?" he asked in confusion.

"Rook! You're ok!" Annabeth said, rushing to him.

"... Pan is that you, man?" he groaned.

"It's Annabeth, silly." the blonde chuckled.

"Oh..." Rook said, appearing disappointed.

"What happened to you, buddy?" Rip asked.

"Wha..? Oh!" he immediately sat up. "Dude you'll never believe what happened to me. But first, I think we need to talk to the Asian girl, yo." I instantaneously went towards him.

"Yo! Uhh..." he prolonged, expecting my name.

"Eve. Eve Masahiro." I answered.

"Yo, Eve! I think you're _in danger_, man." We all looked at him like he was some type of horror film.

"What do you mean she's in danger?" questioned Annabeth.

"Well here's the story, yo: after you guys dashed off, I tracked the big guy down, like you asked me to. But then after hours of tracking him, I realized he was no longer in the land of the rising sun, yo!" he explained.

"How can you be so sure that he wasn't there anymore?" Annabeth asked, again.

"His smell completely disappeared, man. I was getting it, but then it went poof like magic. I was going back to camp, but when I was taking a ride back here, I picked up his scent again! That's right, yo! The Carl is back in the house! It's strange, though. Our quest started because Chiron buddy here picked up Minotaur movement. We followed it to Japan. When you guys left with Asian girl-"

"Eve." I clarified.

"Whatever. Anyways, when you guys left, he leaves too! When I got back to the United States of America, I automatically sensed his presence! And I got attacked for it! It's a good thing I made it into the borders in time, otherwise it would be fried goat for lunch!" the satyr continued.

"So you did get attacked!" Rip said.

"Yeah, and you have no idea what sort of _Underworld_ I've been through! There's no doubt about it. Carl is after her!" he finally finished, pointing at me.

"What would he want from her?" Annabeth asked, confused.

"I don't know, yo. Ask her!" Rook said, crossing his arms. "Maybe she has the answers."

"I don't know either." I quickly said.

"This quest is getting out of hand..." Annabeth said, massaging her temples.

"Quest?" I arched an eyebrow.

"We're undergoing a quest, you see." Annabeth explained. "So far, we have no idea what Carl is up to. We don't even know what is going on right now. Olympus is shut down, and none of the gods would talk to us."

"What sort of quest is this?" I asked, again.

"Well the prophecy goes like this, ya'll:

_'An unknown force shall reign;_

_Two souls come in but one shall disperse in vain._

_Disarrayed Owl and Masked Dove, deal with the other,_

_And you'll get what you're after.'_

That's how it goes! _Word!_" Rook explained, or should I say, _rapped _it.

Annabeth suddenly lit up. "Wait a second..." she said. "Two souls come in, but one shall disperse in vain..."

"Yeah... I guess it's clear that it was... Eve's father." Rip said, gently. He was trying his best to be sensitive about it. Alas, he was not doing a good job at it.

"Then... deal with the other... and you'll get what you're after... I wonder what Rachel meant by 'deal'..." Annabeth continued. _Okay, now who's Rachel? Oh right, the oracle of this camp_. I thought.

"Maybe, we should get rid of her then we'll get Carl?" Rook suggested.

"No, wait... I've got it!" Annabeth jumped. "Eve, you've got yourself a quest!"

(O u O)

Chiron's jaws dropped. "Are you sure, Annabeth?"

"Positive. This quest has Eve's name written all over it." Annabeth said, boldly. We were at the Big House, and Annabeth thinks that I should be a part of this quest, since Carl's movements made it evident that he is after me. But Chiron seemed so irresolute for me to go out. "Wha-what makes you so sure?" the Centaur stuttered.

"Look, Chiron, the prophecy says that Rip and I must deal with the other to get what were after. We're after Carl, and he's after Eve. It's starting to make sense! If we want to stop him, then Eve must be in this quest."

_"But she hasn't been claimed yet!"_

Before she could even protest, Rip interrupted the scene.

"Uh guys... It's Eve..." he said. They all turned to me, with their eyes widened. I started to wonder what was up then I noticed that I was glowing. Not only that, there was something forming on my chest. Soon, it began to look like... an _aegis._ It also looked like the exact aegis that I saw in my dream two nights ago.

"Isn't that..?" Annabeth choked.

"It is. It's the Aegis of Zeus." Chiron said.

"Tha-that means..." Rip stammered.

"Yes...that aegis once belonged to the goddess of war and wise counsel...Athena." Chiron said.

(O u O)

The news of me being the daughter of Athena spread throughout the camp. Just when I was about to be recognized, I had to be sent away to some quest.

Not that I'm complaining, though. I actually wanted to be a part of this. This quest was giving me a chance to finally deal with Carl the Minotaur. Strange, if I remembered correctly, I managed to defeat him... _or did I_? Either way, I had to face him. Then I learned that Annabeth was not coming with us.

"How come, Chiron?" Annabeth protested.

"First of all, this is now Eve's quest. I guess your time is up, my dear." Chiron said, gently. "It is clear that Rip is a part of this, since a child of Aphrodite was mentioned in the prophecy. Also, Rook is a tracker. His skills will be needed in this quest, as well. Furthermore... only three people can go to this quest. Besides, I'm sure this is what the prophecy intended to happen."

Annabeth let out a big sigh of disappointment. However, she understood what had to be done. She then turned to me and extended her hand. "Looks like you're on your own, now." Annabeth said, smiling. Without hesitation, I took it and we shook hands.

After that talk in the big house, Annabeth led me to her cabin, which was now _my_ cabin, and gave a few essentials for the trip. She gave me a black medium-sized backpack, containing a flashlight, a mini medical kit, a metal thermos jug, a guide map of the United States, and a Ziploc container.

At first, I thought they were snacks. Then I began to wonder if they were more than just that. Annabeth took the container and opened its lid to reveal the yellow squares.

"This is called Ambrosia." Annabeth explained. "Once mortals eat this, they could suffer and die. But if a demigod eats this, they regain their strength. Careful, though. Too much of it may cause side effects. Tiny bites would do." I nodded and returned the container back in the bag.

Annabeth lifted the thermos jug. "This jug is filled with Nectar. It also works like Ambrosia." she explained. I nodded, and put the Nectar back in my bag.

"Are you sure you don't need extra clothes?" Annabeth asked.

"I think I'm fine." I answered. But Annabeth still looked unsure. She then went to her trunk and began rummaging through her stuff. Before long, she closed her trunk, and held a neatly-folded white jacket.

"Here," she said, handing it over to me. "You might need this."

I felt my face become flushed. "I don't think I could-"

"Trust me, I've been through a lot of quests. You're going to need at least a jacket on your journey." Annabeth said, winking at me.

Eventually, I hesitantly received the jacket and I gave her a bow of respect. "Thank you so much, _Chase-san_. And I'm sorry for taking this quest from you."

Annabeth smiled. "Hey, no problem. Just like what Chiron said, maybe this was meant to happen." she reassured.

Then there was a knock on the door. "Hello? We've got a quest to finish." it was Rip.

"I guess you better get going." Annabeth said.

"Before I go... there is something you should know..." I said.

"What is it?"

"When Carl attacked me, I tried to defend myself," Here I go. "And I knew I managed to plunge it's torso with my _sai's_. Then he just disappeared, before I could even blink my eyes. Now he's alive again-"

Annabeth chuckled like I was saying something crazy and funny. "You weren't paying attention, were you?"

"Huh?" I blinked.

"You see, when you slay a monster, they all go to Tartarus, and then they rejuvenate there. I'm sure Carl went there and got revived in no time. Though it's strange….. Monsters never return from Tartarus _that _fast."

"Then-"

"Look, were wasting time, Eve. I'm sure you're nervous. But hey, it's ok. You've got Rip and Rook on your side. They may not seem like it, but they're exceptional fighters."

"Fine."

"See you around. And good luck."


	9. Chapter 8: Dangerous Retirees

Our main objective: Find Carl. _That's it._

We were all completely silent at the beginning of our journey. We all rode a bus going to Manhattan, New York for we intended to start our search for Carl there. So far, nothing was happening, and Rook was still not picking up any scent.

When we finally got there, we were dropped off at the Upper East Side. I was completely culture shocked. The busy streets and the random lights left me speechless. All of this amazement completely overwhelmed me that I did not notice Rook picking up a Carl signal.

"Yo! Yo! Minotaur tracking now! Sightseeing later!" he alerted me.

"Sorry." I said, apologetically.

"Hey, don't be too harsh, Rook. She's just a foreigner, after all. Anyway, did you get anything yet, tracker?" Rip said, coolly.

"Yeah. I can sense him heading... south. Unfortunately, we're too far away, he's no longer in the New York area anymore." Rook explained.

"Well then, where is he?"

"Uhhh... Philadelphia..."

"That far? Gosh, Rook! You had to say that we should start our search here!"

"Sorry, man! I didn't expect the bull man to move that fast."

Meanwhile, I thought of something. _Move that fast, huh?_ If he was such in a hurry, then he probably senses our movement. However, that would contradict Rook's theory of Carl coming after me. Unless, if his real intention is to go back to his _hideout and lure us there_. I guess I have improved our main objective. I had to snap these two out.

I tried to grab their attention by calling them out, but that didn't work. This left me with one option. I inhaled deeply, and I yelled out loud, "HEY!" and they were immediately put out of action.

"Thank you for _finally_ paying attention," I said, in a stoic manner. "New mission: follow Carl to his hideout."

The Satyr stared at me like I gave him a pile of work to do. "But we don't know where that is, man." Rook protested.

"That's why we're going to follow him. Now you said he's in Philadelphia, right?"

Rook nodded.

"Well, that means we're going to Philadelphia." I declared, pushing past Rook.

"_But, that's far_!" complained the son of Aphrodite.

I pulled out the map from my bag and searched for possible routes to take. I smirked, pointing at something. "We can always take the Pennsylvania Railroad station then take a route to Philadelphia there." I suggested.

"Slight problem, girl. It's shut down." Rook said.

I groaned, and unfolded the map and looked for any stations that may take us to Philadelphia. Then it struck me. Why bother taking a train or bus, when you can take an _emergency flight_ instead. That just leaves us to an airport.

"Okay, then were going to take an airplane, then." I said.

"But how?" Rook asked, already panicking.

"Teterboro Airport. We're going to have to take another bus, take a major route, and we'll be there by tonight." I explained.

"Oohhh..." Rook said in awe. He then shrugged and walked away.

I began folding the map, when Rip passed by me. "_As expected from the daughter of Athena_." he whispered. _What was up with this guy?_ I thought.

Whatever that was for, it brought shivers to my spinal cord.

(O u O)

When we got to the Port Authority Bus terminal, everything went ill-fated. There was no bus to Teterboro available. We had to wait until next week for them to come back, and we didn't have much time left.

After that, we went outside the terminal and sulked.

"Now what do we do?" groaned Rip. This time, I couldn't say anything.

Out of the blue, a woman in her seventies approached us.

"Why hello, children." she said, giving us a gentle smile.

We gave the old lady a small smile, and looked away. But that did not stop the lady from talking.

"I heard you need a ride." she continued. We then looked at her in a peculiar way. "Well, good news! My friends and I are heading to a convention at Teterboro. And we all rented a bus just so we could go there. So if you like, you may join us." It was such a sweet gesture that I wanted to say yes. However, something was telling me that we shouldn't trust her that easily.

Before I could even open my mouth, Rip stood. "Are you sure it's alright with you, ma'am?" he asked, politely.

"Now, aren't you such a handsome young man." she complimented. "Of course it's all right. You seem like nice kids, and it would be great if you come with us."

"Alright! We accept! Thank you so much, granny! I mean, ma'am!" Rook said, triumphantly.

"Splendid! Now come along then!" said the woman.

When we finally reached to her bus, Rook immediately got in. but I grabbed Rip's shoulder before he stepped in. "Is something wrong?" he asked.

"I don't think we should go in." I whispered in the most silent way I could.

"But why? She's actually kind enough to give us a free ride."

"That's the point! Don't you think it's weird for New Yorkers to be _this_ generous? I may be a foreigner, but I know that it's survival to the fittest around here." I began gritting my teeth.

Rip raised in hands, gesturing me to '_calm down'_. "Whoa, easy. They're just a bunch of senior citizens. What could possibly happen?"

"But still-" before I could finish, the old lady came.

"Excuse me, but is there something wrong, dear?" she asked, sweetly.

I let go of Rip, and shook my head. Then I noticed that there was something strange about the way she looked at me. It looked sincere, at the same time, _dangerous_. If it was not dangerous, then she already knew that I did not trust her.

"Alright, come on in. We haven't got all day." she said. We did as we were told.

The ride was pretty normal for the past several hours. There were only around twelve old ladies inside. They also seemed pretty happy for having young company. The moment was sat at the back of the bus, they started to ask unnecessary questions. One of them asked Rip if I was his girlfriend. He was about to say yes-just for the fun and pleasure of it- but I gave him a good stomp on the foot before he could.

What really freaked me out was the old woman who invited us. She motioned next to me, and stared intently at my eyes. I tried to avoid her gaze, but I was sweating like a pig. This ride was making me awfully uncomfortable. "What pretty eyes you have, dearie." she complimented.

I gave her short bow of the head in gratitude. "Uhm, thank you." I said, hesitantly.

"Are you alright? You've been acting strange ever since the trip started."

I laughed, nervously. "Oh, I'm fine."

"Are you Chinese?"

"Japanese."

"How odd. I never thought Japanese could have grey eyes. Where did you inherit them?"

I gulped. "My mother."

"Oh how nice. _What is she like_?" okay, first my eyes now my mother? This woman was beginning to peeve me!

"Well, I don't know. I haven't met her."

"Awwwww...well that's just too bad. After all, your mother will pay dearly for _what she's done to us_." she hissed.

"Excuse me? Uhm, are you alright, miss?" I asked, for her voice was..._changing._

"Oh I'm fine," she said, hoarsely. "In fact, I would feel much better _if I get rid of you_!" Suddenly, she tried to pounce at me. Luckily, my ADHD acted up, and I managed to slash her hand with my _sai._

She backed up and winced in pain.

"Eve! You just raised a weapon against a defenceless old woman!" Rook accused.

"Wait!" I cried. I then looked at the injured old lady, and her form began to change. Her wrinkled skin began to burn, and she was sprouting bat-like wings. It was not just her, two other senior citizens changed, too. The driver and the nine other women did not seem to notice, but they were not changing. That would mean The Mist, the one that distorts a mortal's mind from actual reality, in the bus was really thick. They must've been thinking that the three innocent senior citizens were just being rowdy.

"Uh... guys, what is happening?" I asked, going near them.

"What do you mean, dearie? _Mrs. Dodds_ seems fine." One innocent old lady pointed out. Yes, The Mist was _that_ thick.

We could not just tell the other senior citizens about the three transforming creatures. They won't believe us at all.

Rip and Rook were tongue-tied. But it was Rook who had the most fearful face of all. "F-F-.." he stuttered.

"What?" I asked, irritatingly.

"F-F-FURIES!" He screamed. The Furies also cried. Before they could even lunge at us, Rip managed to hit them all with... _darts_, but they surprisingly worked. When they got shot by it, they all fell down. "Knock-out darts, works every time." he snickered. Rook then tapped him. "Uhmm.. don't speak too soon." he asked, in a panicked way. The supposed knocked-down Furies were coming back up.

They began to charge, and we all managed to get away, but Rook. One of The Furies began scratching his Jersey. The poor satyr just kept slapping the monstrous creature away. "Ahh! Heelpp!" he screamed. Exceptional fighter, huh?

"Deal with her! I'll get the other two!" Rip commanded, already holding his javelin. I immediately nodded, and barred my _sai's_ to the Fury. The creature who we thought was an innocent old woman began to laugh, and I already recognized why. My _sai's _were not celestial bronze. They were not strong enough to completely destroy a Greek monster; I was at the end of my rope.

"For a daughter of Athena, you seem anxious." the fury mocked. She left Rook alone, and tried to scratch me with its creepy claws. I managed to dodge them, and we began to "dance" from that point on. Man, I was positively sure that the driver was witnessing me arguing with an old lady. The other passengers seem to not notice what was going on, either. They were all busy chatting or knitting. But I did my very best not to hit them, while I was fighting the Fury.

In a little while, I couldn't hold on much longer. She was too strong for me. Soon enough, the fury pinned me to the ground.

"I thought I would never live to see this day," she chuckled. "Seeing a child of Athena, DEFEATED."

"What's your problem?" I asked, irritatingly.

"Your mother interfered with one of our hunts! Because of her, we never got to achieve our objective!" the Fury hissed. _Yes, sure... take it out all on Athena's daughter_. "So now... Athena shall pay... with you plundered once and for all!"

I began to struggle. "I'm not done yet." I grunted. The Fury just laughed.

"Well, _allow me to finish_!" she hissed, raising her claws at me.

"Eve! Catch!" Rip called out, throwing a celestial knife at me. I caught it, and I stabbed it on the Fury's arm. Finally, she screamed and she vaporized in front of my very own eyes.

Subsequently, Rip rushed and helped me get up.

Rook, who emerged from his seat, called out to us. "Everyone ok?"

"Yeah. They're now back at Tartarus. Dealing with The Furies is like dealing with a ripe pimple." Rip answered, he then turned to me. "How about you?"

"Yeah sure." I answered. "What do we do now?" I asked.

Rip grinned. My eyes widened. His smile suddenly… dazzled me. "We enjoy the ride." He said.


	10. Chapter 9: Dragged To Hell

Author's Note: Hello... Well thank you so much for reading~ I really appreciate it :D Anyways, that's what I wanted to say hehe! Chapter 9 up! Enjoy!

-eggsandmarshmallows

* * *

><p>When we finally reached the airport, Rip mentioned to the mortal driver that he has never met us before, and that this day never happened. I don't know why he had to do that, but I just let him for the sake of covering up our identities.<p>

Obviously, the bus driver just agreed to his mesmerizing words.

We looked up at the screen to check flights to Philadelphia. The only flight available was going to New Castle, Delaware. Since the destination was near Philadelphia, we took note of the flight number and departure time.

I was planning for us to sneak into a luggage compartment of the airplane. We would manipulate The Mist, and Rip can use his charmspeaking in case we get caught. But _Mr. Suave_ here already booked us tickets, thanks to his gift of persuasion. He gave me a wink, but I just ignored him.

After that incident with Takeshi, I swore never to get comfortable with boys again.

We boarded the plane, and we took off for New Castle. Sadly, I had to sit beside Aphrodite's kid. Rook spotted a "hot chick" and decided to have a _flight date_ with her. It's a good thing that The Mist covered his hairy bottom and goat-like hooves, otherwise, the girl would have second thoughts about him.

I was completely quiet for the past hour. Rip discerned this, and decided to start a conversation with me.

"So... some quest, huh?" he began.

"You had to let us get in that bus..." I murmured. He immediately understood.

"Well whether you like it or not, you're going to be dealing with a lot of stuff like that if you want quests."

"Still, my instincts were right."

"But hey, it's all over. Now, we're here... relaxing... in this... domestic flight. I should've made it first class, so we could get even more comfortable." This was getting out of hand.

"What is your- what did the Americans call it? Oh right!- _What is your angle_?" I looked at him, firmly.

He chuckled. "There's no angle. I just want to get to know you." Then I ignored him.

"Come on...just tell me what you like and what you hate." He continued.

"Forget it, Gracey-san."

"Please... call me Rip."

"Whatever."

"Ok...let's do this, then. I say random things and you tell me if you like it or hate it. Ready?" He just won't stop at nothing.

I shrugged. Either way, he still continued talking.

"Great! Let's start then! Now let's see... horses?"

".. hate."

"Figures. Music?"

"Specify."

"Pop?"

I shuddered."Uggh. hate."

"Metal rock?"

"Hate."

"Movies?"

"Hate."

"Uhh... sweets?"

"Hate."

"Cats?"

"Hate."

"Gadgets?"

"Hate."

"...Anything popular?"

A pause. "_Hate_."

"_Gods, woman. Is there a thing you don't hate_?" I looked at him.

"Well at least you're talking." I shrugged at him. Then we were silent for a while.

"... books?"

"... like."

"... classical music?"

"... like."

"... nature?"

"... like."

"... me?"

"... _nice try."_

"Oh well. Don't you like me?" I said nothing.

"... Just tell me what sort of issues you've got with me." he continued.

I looked at the window, observing the cumulus clouds forming outside. "Honestly, I don't know if I should even tell you."

"Oh come on, you can tell me." Okay, he was doing the charmspeak. But something was telling me that he was not doing it at all. It's like he was really sincere. Finally, I sighed, and I told him everything about my past. From the day I was called billboard, till that heartbreaking moment with Takeshi.

I did not know why, but I was fully aware that Rip did not use charmspeak on me. Usually, his persuasion abilities try to push you to do a certain action. This time, I was the one moving on my own.

"Oh... I'm sorry, I didn't know." he said, sincerely. "Though, I can assure you that _I'm not Takeshi_." I gave him a small smile, and ignored him.

He did a low chuckle. "Must you always ignore me?" I said nothing.

"Well.." he said, fixing his hair. "To be fair, allow me to tell you my past."

That's when I looked at his hazel eyes. I must say, they were pretty captivating, and his smile was really kind. It actually made me want to listen to his story.

He inhaled and began. "I was already six when I started to act _fancy_. Because of that, my dad can't help but think I was becoming... _gay_. Since he was a great boxer, he thought of teaching it to me. I reluctantly learned for the past seven years. I must say, all that exercise actually helped maintain my incredible design. But I knew perfectly well that boxing was not for me.

"The truth was…. _I wanted to be a supermodel_. When I confessed that to my father, he automatically _disowned_ me. Then I ran away, and that's when Rook came and took me to Camp Half-Blood." his face began to harden. It was saying that he hated his father, but at the same time, he was missing him.

My face suddenly softened, and for once, I was sorry for him. When he clenched his fists, I gently laid my hand on top of his stiff knuckles, trying to soothe him.

He smiled at my sympathy. "You're lucky that your father was your best friend."

"What made you so sure he disowned you?" I began to ask.

"He said so himself."

"What made you so sure... that he meant it?"

His eyes began to tighten, and eventually closed them. He couldn't bear remembering the pain. "I just know that his words really hurt than his blows."

"_Blows?_" my eyes widened. It finally made sense; his father abused him.

Rip massaged his temples with his other hand, as if he was treating all the bad memories like it was just a migraine. Then he looked at me and smiled. "Either way, I heard my father died of a heart attack at a match in Massachusetts, around a year ago. Reconciling with him is far too late, now." then he looked down. I gave him a good pat on the shoulder, trying everything I could to console him.

It was odd; first I was ignoring him, because I was mad. Then I was actually trying to cheer him up.

"Well, past is past." he said, all of the sudden. "At least I got to be friends with you."

I wanted to smile, but instead, I arched my eyebrow and gave him an eccentric look. "Now what?" he chuckled.

"_You've got a zit_." I said, straightforward.

He abruptly unfastened his seatbelt, and ran to the bathroom, bumping the flight attendants. One minute later, he came back, slowly. He did not say anything for a while. But after another minute, he turned to me and said, "There was no zit." I closed my mouth and started giggling. He gave me a shaky smile, and scratched his head. That's right, it was all a silly joke.

"Very funny, you should know how sensitive and naive Aphrodite's kids get when it comes to zits." he said.

"I'll keep that in mind." I said, smiling.

His face suddenly lit up like a lamp. "Hey, you're actually smiling." he pointed out.

When I realized that I was, I stopped giggling and turned away_. I was actually enjoying this?_ I thought.

"No need to be ashamed." Rip said. "I like you better when you smile."

I could not hide the blush that was forming on my cheeks. "You ok?" he asked. I unfastened my seatbelts, and turned my head down.

"Move. I'm heading to the bathroom."

(O u O)

Once again, I was having a dream.

This time, I was in a forest. I was wearing a sleeveless Greek dress and I was lost.

I kept moping about, until I encountered an injured rabbit. I ran towards it, and I examined its wounds. Afterwards, I ripped a cloth from my dress and wrapped its injury.

The rabbit then woke up, twitching its nose. I smiled, for I adore cute things and creatures. When I was getting comfortable with it, I began petting it. When I was rubbing its chin, I felt the fur was actually peeling off.

I carefully peeled it off its fur, and I thought it was shedding. When I finished shedding face, I began to find its actual face...abnormal. It was no longer a charming face of a rabbit, but it was now a vicious face of a sleeping beast. Soon, it awoke and it started to attack me.

That's when I woke up.

I sighed in relief that it was all just a terrible nightmare. I mean, the rabbit was so cute then it turned to some bloodthirsty monster. Sorry, I have a thing for cute things.

My train of thought was interrupted by an announcement from the pilot. He said that we would be landing at New Castle very soon.

"Hey.." said Rip. That's when I realized that I was actually laying my head on his shoulder. I quickly sat up and rubbed my eyes. Rip snickered at this embarrassing gesture. "Had a good night sleep?" he asked, grinning at me. I just ignored him, as usual.

When we landed at New Castle, we reunited with Rook at the arrival area. Apparently, his time with the girl did not go too well. His crush had her eyes set on Rip, and she was disappointed that he switched seats with a _Black-eyed peas wannabe_. Rip just shrugged and told the satyr that he can't help being the son of the beauty goddess. I rolled my eyes at the pointless conversation, and dragged them out of the Airport.

New Castle felt like a miniature version of England. It was peaceful, and completely breezy for a city. However, I did not like the idea that the place was too quiet. Also as much as I wanted to do sightseeing, my airplane hair kept getting in the way. This is what I hated about planes; they somehow make your hair frizzy. It has been like that ever since I stepped foot on the land.

But as we walked farther, I had a shady sensation that someone- or _something_ was tailing us.

When we were at the front of some junkyard of the sort, I stopped to my steps and went in. Rip arched an eyebrow. "Everything ok?" he asked. I silenced him, trying to hear my surroundings.

Everything became too quiet, until a pack of strange hounds suddenly came out behind the mountains of trash, growling at us.

Rip cursed in Greek. "They're Hellhounds." he said, stepping in front of me. He reached for his pocket, and brought out a red Swiss army knife. Soon, it grew longer and longer. Eventually, it turned into his elongated javelin. _So that's where he keeps it!_ I thought.

At that time, I finally perceived that it was Mr. Suave that the Hellhounds were after. They began to growl louder, the moment they set their vicious eyes on him. When they were about to pounce on him, I pushed him away and took the blow.

"_Eve!_" Rip cried. The hellhound certainly did not waste any time. It bit my arm, which caused me to cry in pain. My companions tried to get to me, but they had their own problems. Before the dog from Hell-Underworld, rather- could finish me off, I stabbed its side with my _sai_. When it started to whimper, I kicked it off. I then jumped to stand, and ran to the others.

I stood by Rip's side, making sure the hounds would not go near him. Not that I'm sweet on the guy, I just needed him on this quest.

"Gracey-san, you've got to go ahead!" I cried, hitting a hellhounds head with the butt of my _sai._

"What? At a time like this?" he yelled, cutting one of their tails with his javelin. "And for the _nth time, call me Rip!"_

I groaned and answered his question. "Yes! Now hit the road!" I yelled, kicking the hellhound who was gnawing off my boot.

"What about you? You're weapon is not celestial bronze, and you intend to fight them yourself?"

"Just go! I'm going to stall them!"

"_I can't leave you here_!"

"Well, I can't let these... _hell-dogs_ get to you!"

"You're _important _in this quest!"

"_I need you in this quest, too_! Now, go!"

With all the arguing and fighting off the hellhounds at the same time, I nearly forgot about Rook. Apparently, the hip hop satyr did not use any weapon. All this time, he has been doing a couple of judo throws on the beasts. But there were also numerous times when he was trying to run away from them.

"Uhh… guys, quit fighting like an old couple for a sec!" Rook interrupted, nervously.

_"WHAT?"_ Rip and I yelled.

"Just look!" the satyr faltered, pointing at a particular direction. When we both looked at the way Rook was pointing at, our eyes flared at the sight of the most enormous hellhound that appeared among the pack.

"... I think that's the mother..." Rook added.

"More like the leader." Rip said, his eyes still set on the beast.

The large hellhound began to howl as if it was saying that he (or she) has finally arrived. After that, it took a long jump, and landed right in front of us. It caused both of us to fall flat on our bottoms.

It tried to claw Rip to death. It was a good thing that he managed to roll away. However, it did not stop the leader hellhound from going after him. I was right; they were after him, but _why?_

While it was trying to chase him, I went behind it and slashed its hind leg with my _sai's_. It whimpered in pain, and turned its vicious eyes on me. When I finally had its attention, Rip had to save the day and ride on the Hellhound's back as if we were at some Rodeo Drive.

"That's right, Rip! Show the dogs who is boss, yo!" rooted Rook. Unfortunately, this was not a good time to keep our hopes up. When Rip thought he was getting control of the beast, he began to relax a little too much.

The hellhound started to bolt in an incredibly fast speed! The other hellhounds left us, and followed their trailblazer.

"RIP!" I cried. The next thing I knew, Rip was gone.


	11. Chapter 10: Roadtrip and Roadkill

The junkyard went back to silence, while Rook and I just stood there like idiots.

"This is bad, man! We've got to get Rip back!" Rook panicked.

"I am fully aware of that.." I said through my teeth. "But why? Why would they want him? More importantly, where would they take him?"

"Well hellhounds are from the Underworld, yo. Maybe they're heading to L.A. now."

"_What? But that's miles away!"_ then again, those hellhounds were really fast.

"Don't worry, man. I can pick up Rip's scent. They're pretty far away, but they're certainly not at L.A., yo." he reassured.

"Right." I muttered.

"Looks like there's one thing to do." Rook tried to walk, but he tripped. I immediately went towards him, and a bite injury on his right furry leg was seen. Rook noticed this, and managed to grin.

"Oh this is nothing, yo. I'm cool." he said.

"Nothing, huh?" I said, arching an eyebrow at him. I searched through the backpack Annabeth gave me, and brought out the medical kit. Soon enough, Rook's leg was fully bandaged. The satyr's line of sight then drifted towards the bite on my arm. He gave me a conspicuous look, and I rolled my eyes.

"Fine." I sighed, starting to aid myself. Afterwards, I took a small bite of the Ambrosia. Eating felt like gulping down a box of sugar-rush candy, or something like that. The yellow square of Ambrosia somehow made me feel stronger and replenished. I let out a big exhale and we finally set out of the junkyard.

"Now what, yo?" Rook asked, giving me an expectant look. The wonderful feeling that Ambrosia gave me diminished. I was starting to get pissed off.

"Arrgh! Hang on, I'm thinking!" I said, exasperated. "If you said that they're heading to Los Angeles now then were at total loss. They're probably there by now. Besides, how are we supposed to go after him now? We're almost out of cash, and we can't just fool the mortals around here..." I squat on the ground, waiting for myself to cry. I've never felt so hopeless in my entire life. I was in a totally new country, with less cash and no sense of direction. Rook began to scratch his head till his eyes widened.

"Yo, man! I've got it!" he exclaimed.

"What?" I groaned, losing hope.

"Now don't ya sulk like that, man! I've got an idea! Maybe I can send for some _backup_, yo!" he said.

My eyes began to blink. "Really? How?"

Rook searched around his pockets. Shortly, he brought out a small card which contained a phone number. He ran towards the nearest payphone and started dialling. One of my brows arched at his strange actions. I stood up, and went towards him. While he was tapping his hooves waiting for someone to pick up, I opened my mouth.

"What exactly is your pla-" before I could finish my question, he shushed me. I once again arched my eyebrow. _What is he up to?_ I thought, suspiciously. Soon, someone picked up the other line.

"_Yo, my man!"_ Rook greeted. "Yeah I know it's been like decades since hang... Well I was getting to that... we just need to hitch a ride... oh New Castle, Delaware. Really? Awesome, bro! Catch ya later!"

He put back the phone in its place, and began walking with a wide smile on his face.

"Who was that?" I asked. He didn't answer, instead he was humming.

"Hello? Who was that?" I asked again.

"Oh you'll see..." he said, still grinning.

I rolled my eyes, and I lay on the lamp post. In next to no time, a truck approached in fast speed. It abruptly stopped in front of us, and I flinched at the sound of its booming rap music. Rook went in front of me and began to yell, "Yo, Criss!"

Another hip-hop looking fellow popped out of the driver's window and grinned at Rook. "Rook, my man! Long time no rap yo!" he said.

"You're late, slacker!" Rook scolded, childishly. _Late? Just when he hung up from the phone for like... thirty seconds?_

"Sorry, man. Traffic can be a bummer." _Traffic? Really now?_ Rook's friend then lowered his shades to get a better look of me. "Say, who's your lady friend?"

Rook's face looked like he was slapped by reality. "Oh right! We're on a quest, yo! This here is Eve Masahiro, the girl of Athena. One of our buddies is captured by a bunch of wind-up hellhounds, yo! We need a fast lift, so we could catch up to those fools." he explained _all at once_. Rook's way of saying things was pretty rapid.

"Word, man." his friend said. "Sure you can hitch a ride with me. Anything to help a bro in need, yo."

"Sweet, man! C'mon, yo!" Rook eagerly said. He put his arm around me, leading me to the back of the truck. When we got to the back, the doors opened, revealing three more hip hop satyrs. They all wore the same thing; jerseys, caps, and shades. Only, the only thing that distinguishes them was the colour of their jersey.

"_Hala_!" they all said.

"Yo, peeps! This is my bud, Eve Masahiro. She's Athena's girl, yo." Rook introduced.

"Word..." they all said at once, nodding their heads at me.

"Yo, Eve. The one with the purple jersey is Mac, the one with the true blue jersey is Joey, and the one with the red jersey is Chuck. Finally, we have Criss, our driver." Rook explained, pointing one satyr at a time. I tried my best to keep up with Rook's speech. It was just so fast.

"Who exactly are they?" I asked.

"Hello! We're the hippest rapping group of protectors that ever hit the zone, yo! Ain't that right, peeps?"

_"Hala!"_ they all chirruped. Oh boy, I hated rap music so much, that I was getting second thoughts of getting inside.

"Well, come on, yo! We've gotten all sunlight! Don't ya wanna rescue your boyfriend or not?" Chuck said.

"He is _not_ my boyfriend." I snarled. Rook gave him a "_not cool, man_!" look. Chuck gulped and laughed, nervously. I sighed and got in the truck, anyway.

"Okay, peeps! Sit tight!" Criss called out.

"He really means it, yo." Joey told me. I arched my eyebrow. "What do you-_aahh!"_ I did not finish for the truck suddenly moved in an absurdly swift pace!

Everyone, excluding me, was having fun. They treated this road trip as if it was some roller- coaster ride. Well, I was not hating it, nor was I having fun, everything was all too sudden for me. I did not know how to react. I turned towards Rook who was making "_whoo_" sounds with his other friends. "Is it ok for your friend to drive like this?" I asked, raising my voice. Apparently, the engine, their voices, and stereo made one heck of a racket that I had no choice but to scream.

"_Chillax_, yo! This entire baby is completely protected by The Mist! Not even a single freaking mortal would notice a thing!" Criss explained, loudly. "Even if they did, then they would think that this is just some sleek Porshe gliding through the road."

"_Seriously?_!" I blinked.

"No, it's all in his dreams, man." Mac explained.

"It's all true, bro!" he protested out loud, but it sounded like he was whimpering.

"Yo, I bet your lady friend would like to hear one of our awesome rhymes, yo!" Chuck suggested, nudging Rook.

"Oh no I possibly couldn't..." I declined in the most polite way I could.

Regrettably, they weren't really good listeners. "Yo, peeps! Assemble!" Joey called out. They started to rap. I placed my face in my palms, beginning to groan. This was the worst road trip ever.

(O n O)

For the past two hours, they've been rapping and rapping. Sometimes, they ran out of rhymes to rap, so they repeated the ones they did earlier. Or, they like what they rapped so much, that they performed it again.

They were in the process of doing freestyle rapping. I began to massage my temples, and hoped that the trip would be over soon.

Everything was going rather "smoothly", until we felt something hitting the side of the truck.

"Yo, what was that whack?" Mac asked. Then the other side of the truck also got hit. I stood from my seat to look out of the window. To my surprise, it was those Hellhounds, again.

"Rook! They're back!" I cried.

"What? Bummer, man!" Rook whimpered.

"Yoyoyoyoyo! What's going on with mah truck?" Criss asked, alarmed.

"A couple of hellhounds are trying to break it down." I answered.

"_What? No one bugs mah baby, but me yo!_" he protested.

"_Then step on it_!" I ordered, and he did what he was told.

"Any plans, yo?" Joey asked, nervously. I then tried to calm down and think. For a nerd, I did not know that much about Hellhounds. I only knew that they guard the gates of the Underworld (thanks to the Mythology book I read a few days ago), and that's pretty much it. Unfortunately, if this kept up, the truck will be done for.

Then I remembered what Annabeth said. The demigods can pray to their god parents for help. However, that seemed very unlikely for the gates of Olympus were currently closed, and praying seemed useless. But, it was worth the shot. I may be mad at my mother, but I needed a bit of her wisdom.

"Alright, mother..." I silently prayed. "We both hate losing. Right now, I can't afford to lose to these beasts. I need your guidance, and show these Hellhounds what you're made of!" Right after that very prayer, the owl that I met at camp, was flying to me. This time, it was carrying something. I allowed it to perch on my arm, and I slowly went inside.

Ignoring everything that was happening around me, I took the bag it was carrying. The moment I did, it flew away. _Now what sort of blessing mother would give me_? I asked myself. Then I noticed that there was a note attached to the bag. It read, "_Never doubt."_

When I opened the bag, my eyes widened; they were tiny daggers. In other words, _stilettos_. They were at least six inches long, and were made of celestial bronze. These were enough to bring the hellhounds down. I closed my eyes and silently said, "_Thanks..."_ I then stood up and grabbed the attention of the panicked satyrs.

"You've finally got a plan, daughter of the strategy goddess?" asked Mac.

"Uhh yeah... more or less." I answered.

"Well, spit it out!" begged Joey.

I sighed. "First off, Criss! Keep the vehicle at a maximum mileage. You guys, take these and throw it at the hellhounds."

"Where did these come from?" Rook asked, out of shock.

I rolled my eyes. They were that frightened about the hellhounds that they actually did not notice that an owl even swooped down in here?"Do you honestly think I was just twiddling with my fingers while you guys were crying like babies?" I asked him back. Rook then decided not to say anything. "Alright, whatever you do, don't you ever doubt on these spears. If you believe in yourselves, they will not miss. _Now let's go_!"

I grabbed all of the spears, and gave one for each satyr. Then I realized what I was doing; I was giving orders to rapping satyrs... _What in the world was happening to me?_

I shook my head and took my spear to one of the windows. I eyed on one hellhound, who was trying to meddle with the tires. I put my trust on the spear, and threw it at the creature. Luckily, it hit the hellhound, and it stopped in its tracks. Soon, the satyrs did the same thing and all the beasts went down, one by one.

In the long run, every hellhound was defeated.

"Well that was... quick." I said.

"No problem!" Joey shrugged. "I mean, that was _awesome_, yo! As expected from the girl of owl goddess!"

"_Hala!"_ they all agreed.

I just smiled and shrugged at them.

"Really, man! That was some leadership skills you've got there, yo! For a moment, I thought you were actually her, man!" Rook said. But that remark slightly irked me. I may have received a blessing from my mother, but that did not change the fact that I was furious with her.

"Yo, Eve... you ok, man?" asked Chuck. I nearly forgot that my face was beginning to harden.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just need some time alone." I managed to say.

"Must be the bite injury, man!" Mac said, pointing at the bite mark on my arm.

"Ah, I know what will make the pain shoo..." Joey said.

"Now what would that be yo?" mac asked, arching his eyebrow.

"_Let's rap in celebration, yo_!" Joey exclaimed.

"_Hala!_" they agreed, and began to rap another rhyme. My small smile fell, and my face was back in my palms. Just when I thought that this road trip was going to be calm and relaxing.


	12. Chapter 11: Rip's Other

After three hours of nonsense rapping, the satyrs finally calmed down. Criss eventually turned down the stereo, the truck slowed down, and some were actually sleeping.

I sighed in relief, feeling glad that the road trip was finally going to go on, peacefully. The weather grew chilly, and I replaced my hellhound- bitten sweater to the white jacket Annabeth gave me. I guess she was right about bringing extra clothes on a quest.

I was about closed my eyes in relaxation, until Rook approached me. "Yo.." he said, calling my attention.

"Hm?" I responded.

"Why do you think the Hellhounds bothered tampering with the truck, eh?" he asked. The question actually struck me. Why were they bothering with us? Were they actually the same hellhounds we dealt with at the junkyard earlier? If the same pack of hellhounds were still trying to attack us, then that could only mean one thing...

"_They're close by."_ I said silently, which almost sounded like a whisper.

"What?" Rook asked, tightening his eyes.

"They're not that far! It all makes sense now! They were attacking us because they were stalling us! Something must've happened to their leader, so they were here to just buy it some time." I said, analytically.

"Yeah.. I'm starting to get it too, yo!" Rook exclaimed.

"Hey, where are we?" I asked Criss.

"Uhh... I think were almost near Baltimore..." Criss answered.

"Shoot, were past Philadelphia..." I cursed.

"I don't think that would be a problem..." Rook said.

"What do you mean?"

"I'm picking up movement from Carl the Minotaur... He's not in Philadelphia anymore, yo. He's heading farther south." he explained. "But more on him later, yo. Right now, we rescue our bro."

I nodded in agreement. "Can you smell him?" I asked.

"Yeah...actually I do! He's close by... he's in Baltimore...in some kind of... park... yeah, I can smell trees and grass. He's most definitely in a park."

"Maybe you're talking about Morrell Park." Criss mentioned.

"Well it's worth the shot, yo!" Rook said.

"Step on it!" I demanded. Then we were back in ultimate speed. In a span of ten seconds, we were already in front of Morrell Park. We immediately went down, and turned to Criss.

"I'll wait here, yo. You peeps might need some backup." Criss said.

"Sure thanks, man. I owe you one." Rook said, with gratitude in his voice.

Criss grinned. "Now just do what ya gotta do in there, yo." We both nodded at Criss, and started to enter the park.

The area was awfully dark and quiet, which I did not like. Rook told me that Rip's scent was strongest here, but there was not a single hellhound in sight. I reached for the flashlight in Annabeth's backpack, and began searching. Soon, I was picking up presence.

"Yo, Eve..." Rook said.

I turned to the Satyr. "What?"

"At first I thought you're some snobby Nicole Ritchie kind of girl," he continued. "But now I think you're cool, man."

_Nicole Ritchie?_ "Uhm, thanks... I guess." then I heard rustling in the bushes. I faced the flashlight at the bushes, but they suddenly became still and quiet. Rook and I exchanged suspicious looks when we heard the voice that nearly brought smiles to our faces.

"Eve! Rook! Are you guys there?" Rip called out.

"Yo, man! Where are ya?" Rook called out.

"Over here!" Rip responded.

While he kept calling out, we started to follow the sound of his voice. I felt glad hearing his voice, but I was still bracing myself for any Hellhound. There was not a single one in sight. Did Rip defeat all of them himself?

When were close by his voice, I could tell he was smiling at his words. "I can't believe you guys came for me. I'm right behind this bush." he said. I smiled a small smile, somewhat glad that he was safe.

I was about to go to the bush, when Rook suddenly called out, "Not cool, man! Eve, back-up! That ain't Rip's scent!"

I gave him an eccentric look. "What do you mean?"

He pulled me away from the bush. "Back away! _That's not Rip_!"

"What are you talking about? Of course it's-" before I could finish, a black figure suddenly sprang from the bushes and landed behind us. It did not look human, but it certainly looked like... a lion. One thing's for sure, it was not a hellhound; it growled hysterically.

I hesitantly faced the flashlight towards the mysterious figure. The moment light struck on it, my eyes widened out of shock. It looked like a freakishly-large hyena with a bony ridge of a jaw. I thought it was a griffin but it did not have a face of an eagle. But, the creature looked awfully familiar. I remembered seeing such an animal from the book I read. Soon, it dawned upon me.

"It's a _Leukrokotai._" I said.

"Well, sure it is! I guess it mimicking Rip clearly states that he wants us for dinner!" Rook said, in a panicked tone. The Leukrokotai snarled at us, and began to charge. We dodged it's attack, but it began to chase Rook. It seemed that the hyena-like monster was craving for a medium-rare satyr. Luckily, a plan came to my mind as it was busy with poor Rook.

I started to climb up a tree, and I could see the Leukrokotai chasing Rook in circles from above. I waited for the creature to at least pass by the tree I was in. When it did, I jumped down from the branches, and rode on its back.

The monster tried to struggle, but I held on tight to it. It was rather difficult to search for its vital parts, when it was vigorously trying to shake me off. I withdraw my_ sai's_ and stabbed them on the sides of the Leukrokotai. When it began to roar in pain, it managed to shake me off of its back. I fell to the ground, and it tried to squash me to death. Rook pulled me away.

"You ok, man?" he asked.

"Yeah. But I'm _weaponless,_ now." I said, and looked at the Leukrokotai who had both of my_ sai's_ lodged on its sides.

I looked at the restless beast, who was now circling around like a puppy. It was trying to figure out how it was going to take out the _sai's_ off its sides. Obviously, steel did not affect Greek mythological creatures. I'm sure my _sai's_ only felt like blunt pins to them. God, I felt so annoyed.

Soon, the beast finally realized that chasing its tail was pointless, so it focused its eyes on us. When it started charging, Rook went out of the way while I rummaged through the backpack. I managed to bring out the celestial bronze knife I used on the Fury at the bus. Without further delay, I threw it at the Leukrokotai. The weapon managed to hit its eye and it went panic mode for a while. I knew I had to come up with a better strategy. And fast.

"Rook! Distract the hyena for me will ya?" I called out.

"What? No way in the Underworld, am I going through that again!" he complained.

"_Do it before I actually allow it to devour you!_" I threatened.

My anger actually made Rook recoil. "Uhhh sure! Anything for you, yo! Ehehehe!" he called out, nervously.

While he started to grab the Leukrokotai's attention, I searched through the backpack again, bringing out the bag that contained the stilettos. _Thank the gods,_ I thought. _There's still more. Wait…did I just thank the gods? Oh, never mind!_ I shook my head and brought out the remaining stilettos.

I carefully I aimed for the creature's legs. I threw one stiletto. One leg got hit. I threw another. Another leg got hit. I kept throwing, until all four legs were out of commission.

Rook stopped running around and looked at me, in disbelief. "Wha-what did you do, man?" he stammered.

"I assumed that creature's legs were not just its strong points, but also its _weak points_." I said, looking at the Leukrokotai. It was squirming in the ground like a helpless worm.

"I must say... we got it good, yo!" Rook grinned. I shrugged and I went to the creature to remove the _sai's _off its sides. But the moment I did, the Leukrokotai suddenly jumped on me!

Rook called out my name the moment the creature was on top of me. I squirmed underneath it and I tried kicking it off. But the monster was too big and heavy for me to shake off.

I barred its fangs at me and was ready to devour me. The Leukrokotai let out a roar of victory and brought its smelly mouth towards my face. Suddenly, it stopped. Eventually, it fell to its side, lying beside me. I looked at the beast beside me. My eyes widened. It was already dead and it soon vaporized, returning to Tartarus.

I sat up, panting out of shock and horror._ What just happened? _I thought. It was ready to eat me alive, but then it died.

I was beginning to wonder how it died, until I saw the javelin pierced to its side.

"Eve! Are you okay?" a familiar voice asked.

I turned to see if the voice was not just a mere delusion. Fortunately, it wasn't. It was Rip. It really was him. I did not know if I should punch him or hug him. So I just stood there, feeling petrified at the sight of him.

"Rip! You're okay!" Rook cried.

Rip gave the satyr a smile. "It's good to see you too, man."

"What happened, yo? How did you escape from the Hellhounds?" Rook asked.

Rip went to the spot where the Leukrokotai laid and picked up his javelin. "Well, I handled them. _Single-handedly." _I raised a brow at the son of Aphrodite. _He defeated them all by himself? Was that even possible?_

Rook did not even bother being suspicious about it. He was just so happy to see his friend. "Wicked." The satyr said, impressed.

Rip went towards me and offered his hands. "Were you scared?" he asked, smiling at me. I just looked at him. _How can a son of Aphrodite have the guts to handle a pack of Hellhounds? Why were those creatures even interested in him, in the first place? Who in the world is this person anyway?_

I stood by myself, completing ignoring his helping hand. I looked at him, blankly. "Well, it's good to know you're fine."

Rip pouted. "Weren't you worried about me?"

"Well, I was worried that you couldn't handle those beasts. I was also annoyed that we had to waste our time for you." I said, maintaining my blank face.

"Aww, you were worried about me." he said, teasingly.

My ears grew hot. "Listen you—"

Rook interrupted. "Whoa! I'm picking up Carl movement, yo!"

"You have?" I lit up.

"Yeah... and he's been stationary for quite a while, man."

"Well, where is he?" Rip asked.

"... Washington D.C."


	13. Chapter 12: An Unexpected Entity

We rode back in the truck and took the route heading to Washington D.C. According to Rook, Carl has been there for several hours. It was now certain that the Minotaur finally reached his destination. Possibly, he was waiting for us to fall in his trap. We had to be fully prepared when we arrive.

Sadly, Rook's peeps were already tired, and the truck needed to be recharged. So we decided to stop by at a motel for the night.

When we settled in, Rook and his satyr friends decided to go out and hang a bit. Rip and I, on the other hand, were left in the motel room. Mr. Suave was having a shower, while I lay on the bed and stared at the ceiling fan, where my thoughts started to run wild.

_We were almost reaching Carl_, I thought. I wondered what would happen the moment we disembark on the land where the White House is. I was expecting for the worse, but I feared that I would learn something terrible about myself. What if I end up getting betrayed in the end? Rook is a nice guy, and all... but it's Rip I'm suspicious about.

There was an enticing side about him, but there was also something about him that I did not like. Unfortunately, I don't know what that is. Are the skills of an Aphrodite kid that deceitful?

Then I remembered the green box that I got from Rook, a few days ago. I reached into my pocket to see if it was still there; and it was.

I brought it out, and I glowered at it. According to my father, it was never opened. But when I looked at it, the box did not contain any lock, whatsoever. I placed my hand on the lid, and tried to lift it. To my surprise, it _opened_. I blinked in surprise. _Was being a demigod considered an access to this box_? I supposed so.

I started to look at the inside of it. Unpredictably... it was an Apple iPod Nano.

I looked at the gadget with an atypical look. I took the music player of the box, and examined it more. I realized it was not just any regular iPod; it had the colour of real gold. It looked so authentic and real that I could actually see my own reflection.

Apart from that, it had the features of a normal iPod. It had the black screen, the round control, and the apple icon on the back. Instead of the label "iPod", there was something behind the iPod that was engraved; it read, "_Kallistei_". As a demigod, I knew that the term meant, "_To the fairest one_." Suddenly, the phrase suddenly became oddly recognizable to me.

Before I could even remember what, I heard the water in the shower stop. Rip was already done.

I immediately put the golden iPod back in the box, but I couldn't find the cover. I hastily searched all over the bed, but it was nowhere to be found. I checked underneath the bed, but it was still not there. I then checked each side of the bed, till I finally found it at the side facing the window. I quickly took it, closed the box, and shoved it in pocket. As soon as I did that, Rip came into the room.

"Hey, gotta problem down there?" Rip asked.

"Yeah I-" I turned to look at Rip, and to my surprise...he was dripping wet, in nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist.

My jaws tempted to drop, but I controlled it. I fell silent for a while, thinking of how to react. I was not that used to seeing "inappropriate" men. In fact, I've _never_ bothered being around men. After what happened with Takeshi, I thought I would _never _interact with another boy... especially not like this (how many times must I repeat _never?)_. I did not even see my father in that kind of... state.

In this awkward moment, I could tell right away that Rip was starting to get complacent. "What?" he said, teasingly.

Without prior notice, I threw one of my _sai's_ at him; cutting one or two strands of his precious hair. "Get dressed before I kill you." I said, in a dangerous tone.

"What's wrong? Don't you like the scene?" he said, with a smug look on his face.

"_I'm serious_!" I yelled. _This was not funny, at all_. I thought.

Rip flinched and raised his hands up as if he was surrendering. "Fine, fine... I'll dress up." he said.

I sat on the bed, putting my face in my palms. _What the heck was my problem?_ I thought. _Why am I feeling so tense about... him? Why am I afraid of that... vain guy?_ All these confusing thoughts filled my head, until I noticed that Rip was handing over my _sai._

I looked up to see a completely dressed Rip, who had a sincere look on his face. I grabbed my weapon, and propelled it in my boot. Afterwards, I turned away from him, crossing my arms.

"Were you crying?" he asked. I shook my head.

He let out a heavy sigh. "Look, I'm sorry if I was being inappropriate."

"Whatever." I mumbled out.

"C'mon, Eve." he begged. "I never thought that it would actually make you that touchy."

"Well, I don't like seeing half-naked men. I'm not the hormone-crazed type of girl, you know."

"I guess I kinda figured that out the hard way. You're not like the other girls I've met. In fact, you're the only one who resists my charm." I said nothing.

"It's Takeshi, isn't it?" he guessed. _Why do the most painful guesses have to be right?_

"Shut up." I snapped.

He sighed, took my chin, and turned my face to his. "I'm not him."

I pushed the hand that held my chin. "What's your point?" I asked, wound up.

"Just give me a chance. I'm... _interested_ in you, Eve. But if you don't want to act fast, then that's cool with me. All I want from you is trust."

I rolled my eyes. He was not using charmspeak, at all. But I felt uncomfortable and moved, at the same time. "_Why me_?" I choked.

"Because you're really_... something_. I would really like it if were good trustworthy friends."

I looked down and stared at my lap and we fell silent for a while. I then stared at nothing, contemplating on what he said. _He was interested... he just wants me to trust him... What did he mean by interested anyway? _I thought.

I tried to look at Rip's hazel eyes once more, but they were closed. Not only that, his face was moving... closer. My heart began to race, and I panicked. I did not understand the motive behind his actions, but that did not mean that I knew what he was trying to do. Was it not obvious? _He was trying to kiss me!_

And without thinking, I closed my eyes too. _What are you doing?_ I yelled in my mind. But sadly, I did not listen to myself, and let my body do all the work. Just when he was an inch closer to my face, the door suddenly opened.

_"Hala!"_ the satyrs greeted. We jerked away from each other, and we both looked at opposite directions pretending that nothing happened.

The rapping satyrs gave us palpable looks. "Uhh... did we interrupt something?" asked Criss.

"Oh no, you... came just in time. It was getting lonely in here." Rip said, with disappointment in his voice. I just nodded in agreement.

"Uhh... okay.. if you say so." Rook said, still giving us teasing look.

When it was time to hit the hay, the satyrs decided that they could sleep on the floor. Rip insisted that I should sleep on the bed, since he found the couch more comfortable. Soon, everyone fell asleep but me.

I took out the iPod once again, and started playing with it. Even though the entire room was dark, it still looked shiny and visible. I started to speculate why Rook took this from my dad's office. _Could it be that it was an item they were searching for?_

Better yet, was it something Carl was looking for in my house? If it was that valuable, I realized that I had to keep it out of the wrong hands. But what was so special about a golden iPod anyway? I mean, you could buy it in Apple stores worldwide. Also, they improve their gadgets from time to time. The next thing you know, they create a music player that makes holograms. What? It's possible.

My mind drifted to my father; I missed him a lot. I missed his gentleness, his smile, his intelligence, his cooking, everything. I hoped that this quest would do him justice, at least. I still could not understand why he had to die.

I turned to Rip, who looked peaceful in his sleep. I still couldn't get rid of the fact that he tried to kiss me. He wanted to be friends then he tries to make a move? You've got to be kidding me.

I have to admit, I find him sweet at times. I can see he was trying his very best to gain my trust and he was sensitive about my past and hardships. Also, everything he said to me was true. he wanted my trust, he wants to be friends with me, he really means it whenever he apologizes, I'm different from the other girls he's met, and...he's interested in me.

However, the word "interest" had a lot of definitions. He seemed like a pretty nice guy, but I'm scared to get comfortable with him. Why? I did not know what he meant by "interested". It's either he meant that he likes me, or... he wants something from me.

I hoped that it was not the latter. I did not want Rip to betray me. Honestly…I wished that everything he was saying to me was real. It's been such a long time since I've had this feeling. And it was a nice feeling, I did not want to let it go.


	14. Chapter 13: Reverie

When I opened my eyes, I found myself at a completely different place; and this venue was by far very different.

Instead of waking up in an old motel room, I woke up in a silky bed, and a marble-made room. It was like I was moved to some five-star hotel, or something. Also, the structure of the room was obviously Greek.

I slowly sat up from the comfortable bed, and I found myself in the same Greek dress that I wore in that bunny dream I had. I also began to think if this luxurious room was also a dream, too.

I got out of bed, and went out of the room. I ended up walking down a marble hallway. I marvelled at the beautiful architecture, and the amazing paintings on the walls. Everything was, without a doubt, Greek. I started to wonder if the guys moved us to some Greek hotel. That's when my eyes widened, and started to search for my companions.

I ran almost everywhere in the...palace. When I reached to the other hall, I encountered a young maiden. I ran towards her, and asked her, "Excuse me, miss... have you seen a few companions of mine? One is a blonde man, and the rest are rapping men in jerseys."

After asking that question, the girl started to giggle. I arched my eyebrow at her sudden chortle. "I believe that your fatigue made you awfully confused, your grace." she said, politely.

I got confused. "_Your grace?_ You don't understand, I'm on a journey and I ha-" before I could finish my sentence, the girl dragged me by the hand.

"Come along, your grace. We have a wedding to attend to, remember?" she reminded me_. Your grace? Wedding? What exactly was going on?_

As she kept dragging me back to the room I was in, we crossed by a huge mirror. When I looked upon the mirror, I nearly fainted; I was not myself. My usual Asian features were replaced by beautiful golden brown hair, a set of dark eyes, and radiant skin. My forehead was visible, but it was not really that huge. _Who in the world was I?_

I wanted to ask what happened to myself, but I did not want to sound more of a lunatic. I decided to go with the flow, learn what was going on, and pray that everything was just a dream.

So far, I learned that the girl was my servant, and that I was Peitho, the goddess of persuasion. I got the servant girl by just saying a few words. Furthermore, I was invited to the wedding of Peleus and Thetis.

The servant girl kept combing my hair, and adorned my body with jewellery. I shuddered the moment the gold touched my skin; I hated fancy jewellery.

"Alright, ma'am. It looks like were ready for the wedding." the servant girl said, handing me over a bridal wreath. I took it and nodded, nervously. "Alright, let's get this show on the road."

"Mistress... you sound awfully strange ever since you woke up." she said, raising an eyebrow at me.

I laughed nervously. "Oh I'm fine, you! Like you said, it was all fatigue." I said, smiling convincingly. Soon, the girl bought it and led me to the wedding ceremony.

We arrived quite early to the wedding. Being in a wedding filled with gods was all a bolt from the blue. Speaking of bolt, I saw a really big guy with a beard, laughing out loud with other minor gods. It was none other than Zeus, Lord of the sky. Beside him was a lovely lady with dark-coloured hair. Seeing her being "clingy" to the lightning god, already made me understood that she was Hera, Queen of the gods. I don't know why, but I quiver at the thought of seeing Zeus and Hera, together. I know that they're supposed to be "model" parents, but they were still siblings.

Soon, another god came into the picture. He had a debonair smile, carried a lyre, and was always talking in a poetic way. Yeah, he was Apollo, alright. He kept reciting his amazing poems to the other gods, that Hera and Zeus were trying their hardest not to get bored. After all, Hera always intends to keep the family picture perfect.

After Apollo's endless poems, everyone suddenly stood up and stared lustfully at the goddess of love and beauty herself, Aphrodite. I wanted to say that she was like the ugly duckling's twin, but I couldn't lie. She was absolutely beautiful. She was so gorgeous that she made the goddesses in the room (including Hera) insecure. She also has Rip's smile... _wait , what was I saying_? I shook my head at the sick thought.

After that grand entrance, Aphrodite went to Zeus and Hera and gave them both pecks on the cheek. "My, Lady Aphrodite is certainly beautiful, isn't she?" the servant said in awe.

"Yeah, a polygamist." I said under my breath.

"Pardon me, mistress?"

"Nothing."

Then everyone's glances turned at the entrance again. I groaned, wondering who it could possibly be. But when I looked at the entrance, I stopped breathing. The new guest was a woman, and she wore an incredible set of armour instead of a fancy Greek gown. The guard told her to surrender her weapons, and she shoved him her spear. I smirked; that was actually pretty slick.

She continued to enter the room, she removed her helmet and my jaws were about to drop to the ground. It was my mother, Athena.

"Mom.." I said, almost speechless. After fifteen years of my life, I actually saw my mother. And she was not just any mother, she was the goddess of wisdom and warfare. Aphrodite may be beautiful, but so was my mom... in a _badass_ way.

She had black hair and it was messy like Annabeth's, and-to my surprise, she had those stormy grey eyes. Seeing them felt like seeing my missing childhood stockings.

She wore the aegis that I saw in my dream, and she held the shield that had Medusa's head in her right hand. Also, she looked pretty serious. It was like she was entering a battlefield instead of a wedding.

Then the guard from earlier approached. "Uhm, excuse... almighty, Athena your-" before he could finish, Athena dropped the rest of her awesome equipment on him. I closed my mouth with my hand, and held in a snicker.

The wisdom goddess then went to the "power" couple. "Hello, father..." she said, with respect in her voice. She then turned to Hera and gave her a blank look. "Queen Hera." she just said. Then the queen just nodded at her. Her voice sounded so serious yet it was so fearsome.

She then looked at Aphrodite with an austere gaze. But Aphrodite gave her the sweetest smile. "Sister!" she said, sweetly.

"Aphrodite." Athena replied, indifferently.

When everyone else arrived, the wedding ceremony began.

The wedding was actually pretty fun and festive. Everyone was incredibly happy, especially the wedded couple. Apollo played music with his lyre and so did the Muses. The Three Graces were also there, dancing gracefully. Nobody seemed to mind me, though. I guess Peitho was that of a dangerous goddess.

Everything was all going too well, until the room suddenly became dark.

Apollo and the muses stopped playing music, while The Graces ran and screamed in terror. The other gods, especially Zeus and Athena, were preparing for the worst. Soon, black smoke emerged at the center of the room. It began to swirl around each other then it exploded. But it was not over yet, something... or someone was emerging at the center.

I thought it was going to be Hades since the figure was wearing black; but the shadowy being turned out to be a woman. She had long flowing hair that looked like she hasn't combed it for months. She had incredibly long black nails, and translucent pale skin. What was scary about her was her sinister face. She looked like some demon or a witch. Her alluring eyes looked so ominous that it brought shivers down to my spine.

"Eris..." Zeus growled. I get it...she was Eris, the goddess of discord.

"Why hello Zeus... it seems all of you are having such a splendid time." the goddess said, menacingly. "Looks like everyone is here, but me." It all made sense; she came because she was uninvited... and she's fumed about it.

All of the gods did not say anything, not Even Zeus dared to utter a sound. Eris smirked at him, and reached for something in her back. "Now I wonder," started Eris. "Which one of you is worthy.. to be the _fairest?_" she then let out an evil cackle and dissolved in the black smoke. The room was bright again, and everything went back to normal. _That was odd_, I thought. _No curse? No rampage? No anything_?

Suddenly, a round object out of nowhere and landed on Zeus' feet. When Hera was about to grab the object that Eris left, Zeus stopped her and picked it up himself. When I squinted my eyes to get a closer look, the object turned out to be an apple... a golden apple. Zeus looked intently at it and said, "This apple is addressed to the most fairest."

"Zeus, dear... it's already obvious that I deserve the apple. I am the queen, after all." Hera said, boastfully.

Before Hera got her hands on the fruit, Aphrodite stood and got in the way. "With all due respect, mommy dearest, I am the goddess of love and beauty. I am clearly the most fairest and thus, I should have the golden apple."

Athena stood up and went to the scene. Honestly, I expected her to stop the ridiculous fight. However, she had to join in. "Well, the fairest may refer to the most logical." she said, implying that she deserved the apple more than anybody. Soon enough, the goddesses began to fight.

I sighed, seeing an awful side of my mother. Well, she is the goddess of strategy; she can't afford to lose.

Eventually, Zeus had enough too. "_Silence!_" he snapped. "Simply arguing just won't do. We must settle this some other way..." Then the king of the gods went deep in thought, holding the apple tight.

His face somehow lit up and I suddenly could imagine a light bulb floating above his head. "I've got it." he finally said.

"What do you have in mind?" Hera asked.

"Paris of Troy is known to be a fair and equal judge. I'll see if he can be the one to judge this...competition." he said.

After that declaration, the wedding was over. The servant girl then led me back to Peitho's chambers. When we got there, I felt the urge to see the outcome of this apple phenomenon.

"My dear," I said, trying to sound like Peitho as much as possible.

"Yes, mistress?" asked the girl.

"I'm dying to know what would become of that... scrumptious golden apple..." I started. "Do you think we could watch the judgment of Paris?"

"Uhh I'm not so sure myself, your grace. It may be a personal matter."

"Oh right... well... I'm the goddess of persuasion... how can I not watch?"

(O u O)

We finally arrived at the place where the judgment would take place. There we saw the Paris of Troy, who was waiting for the adjudication to commence. He had dark curly hair, and he was quite muscular. Not only that, he was not in Greek armour like what I expected him to be. He was in nothing but in mere shepherd's clothing.

The judgment was taking place at Mount Ida, and it was such a lovely day. The trees were all healthy green, and the birds were chirping at the glorious sky. I was admiring the beauty of nature until we heard someone approaching. We then hid behind the bushes and watched intently.

Soon, a god in flying shoes arrived. Obviously it was Hermes, the messenger of the gods. He came to deliver the golden apple. Paris accepted it, and then the three goddesses finally appeared, and there was something different about them; I could sense confident vibes within them. _Now what are they up to now?_ I thought, smirking.

"I now commence the arbitration of the golden fruit." Paris declared. "You all do realize that whatever I decide would be final, right?"

"Yes, Paris dear." Hera said, amiably. "However, if you allow me to bear the title of 'the fairest one' I shall make you ruler of all Europe and Asia. Now those are large continents, eh?"

"I'm listening." Paris said, engaged in the conversation.

Before Hera could continue, my mother bumped in. "Well, Paris. If you hand over the golden apple to me, then the prophecy of you destroying Troy shall be proved wrong." Athena said, assertively. "I'll bestow great battle skills that you will actually lead Troy to victory."

Paris' eyes widened in great interest. But just when my mother was starting to convince him, Aphrodite pushed her away and gave the man a very tantalizing smile. _Oh boy,_ I thought. _I bet she was going to use charmspeak on him._

"Now you're such a handsome man," Aphrodite complimented. "A striking man such as yourself deserves something much more better than skills and power."

"Really?" Paris blinked.

"Why yes...you deserve the most beautiful wife." she continued. "I can provide that for you... if you give the fruit that is meant for me."

Paris was beginning to buy it, which was shocking. His face suddenly was filled up with desire and excitement that he jumped from the rock he was sitting. "I finally came to my decision." he said.

The goddesses then looked at him, anticipating for the final verdict. Paris then took the apple and held it in front of them.

"The fairest is... Aphrodite." he said. She gave a lovely smile, and grabbed the apple.

When the love goddess started to prance in victory, my vision became blur and I was beginning to feel dizzy. I began to groan and massage my temples.

The servant beside me soon noticed. "Your grace! Are you feeling alright?" she asked, worriedly.

"It's...another.. fatigue..." I said, faintly. Momentarily, I succumbed into the darkness.

(O u O)

When I finally woke up, I found myself in a Greek temple. Though, it was not just any temple; it was the Parthenon, the temple dedicated to my mother. I felt my face and clothes. I sighed in relief. I was myself, again.

I finally got up, and from a distance... I saw the owl, again.

"You again." I said.

Instead of staring at me or hoot, "Eve"... it actually spoke. "Yes it is me... my child." it said.

My eyes began to bulge. "M-mother?" I stuttered.

"Yes it is, dear. However, I can only speak to you in this form as of now. My, you look so much like your father." My shocked look then turned into a glare.

My mother seemed to understand how I felt. "Now, I only came to you because I showed you the judgment of Paris for a good reason."

I suddenly remembered that. "What happened after Aphrodite got the apple?" I asked.

"Well, Hera and I became bitter enemies of Troy. I had to side with the Greeks, naturally. But things got a little complicated." she explained. When she mentioned the word, "complicated", I already discerned what she was talking about. After the fall of troy, the Greeks forgot to thank her or something. So she asked Poseidon to send storms and destroy their ships. In no time, my mother started speaking again. "Also, the wife that my sister gave to Paris was..."

"Helen of Troy... am I right?"

"...yes."

"So it was Aphrodite who started the Trojan War."

"Actually, it was Eris who is the instigator. She was the one who gave us the golden apple, in the first place."

"You know... I can't help but ponder on why you had to be involved in this, too. So tell me, mother... _why?"_

My mother fell silent. I got frustrated; _why can't the anticipated questions be answered?_

"Gosh, mother." I said, slightly irritated. "Why... why must you win everything...? Honestly, I found your move absolutely weak."

"Look, Eve... I know you're mad at me."

"Just forget it! I've got a quest to finish." I turned away from her.

"Very well...but before I go, I must warn you... take care of what you possess now... and, beware of that companion of yours."

"What?"

I turned to look at my mom. But when I did, she already flew away.


	15. Chapter 14: Humming the Lullaby

I was back in reality. I woke up, abruptly sitting on bed and panting. Then I turned to see Rip, coming out of the bathroom.

"Hey." he said, smiling at me.

"Hmm." I managed to say.

"Well, you're a late bird. It's already eleven in the morning."

As usual, I ignored him and got out of bed.

Rip and I went down to meet up with the satyrs, who were preparing the truck. The moment Rook saw me, he started to complain what a heavy sleeper I was. I just brushed passed him and boarded the vehicle. We then headed to Washington D.C., shortly.

While we were going there, I began to contemplate on my very strange dream. I actually witnessed a story in Greek history, and my mother warned me about something I had in possession and about a companion of mine. What did it all mean?

I dreamt about the judgment of Paris, which initiated the Trojan War. Did it mean that a much bigger war was coming? Also, it was Eris and her stupid golden apple that caused all of it. Then... it suddenly came to me. What happened to the golden apple after the Trojan War? Did Aphrodite still have it?

Not only did Greeks move to western civilization, they also modernized so that they could fit in to society. If that was the case then the golden apple changed form, too. There was no doubt about it_; I have the golden apple, and it was in a form of a gadget. _

While nobody was looking, I secretly hid the small box inside my boot. My heart beat so fast and beads of sweat started forming around my head, as I was doing so.

As for my companion... I guess I had to be careful. But I wished that my mother was wrong, for once.

After all that thinking, we arrived at Washington D.C. We were dropped off at Dupoint Circle, where we said goodbye to Rook's rapping friends.

"You sure you guys are cool from here?" Criss asked.

"Totally. Thanks for the lift, man." Rip said.

"No problem, bro. now whatever's going on between you and that Asian chick, better fix it, yo." Mac whispered.

"I heard that." I said, glaring at them.

Mac gulped. "Whoa, good luck, man. You're gonna need it."

Rip just laughed. "Don't worry, we've got it all under control."

The satyrs turned to Rook and he gave them all manly handshakes and hugs. "This is it. End of the line, yo." Rook said.

"Word, bro. Now you do your job right, man. We're protectors yo!" Joey said.

"I will, bro. don't cha worry." Rook reassured.

"Okay, we're gonna blast then." Chuck said.

"Sure." I said.

"_Hala!_" all the satyrs said. They waved us goodbye, and they disappeared after a nanosecond.

Rip and I then gave Rook an expectant look, and the satyr gave back a strange look. When he finally realized what our faces meant, he gave us a quick nod and started sniffing the air. He soon picked up Carl's scent, and we headed south.

We surpassed the White House, and went east. After all that walking, Rook stopped in front of the Lincoln Memorial.

"This is it?" Rip asked, already panting.

"Yeah. This is it, yo. Carl's scent is strongest in there." Rook retorted.

I usually look at marvellous architecture in awe and excitement. But when my eyes were set on the Lincoln Memorial, my heart began to race and I was starting to sweat. Rip sighted this, and took my hand.

"Relax, it's going to be fine." he said, trying to uplift me.

I closed my eyes, and pushed away his hand. "Rip, do me one favour." I said.

"Anything." he said.

"Don't you dare...betray me. If you do, I will kill you."

He looked at me blankly. He fixated his eyes upon the Lincoln Memorial; it was like I asked for the impossible."...Done."

"Okay, let's go."

When we entered the memorial, we saw the marble statue of Abraham Lincoln. I can't help but feel that the deceased president was telling us to turn back and leave. I decided to look away from the statue and focused on the quest at hand.

"Are you sure Carl's in here?" I asked.

"Yeah! His scent is getting stronger and stronger as we speak, yo!" Rook said, sniffing all over the place.

"That's because I am in here." a monstrous voice said. We turned around to see Carl the Minotaur, emerging from behind the statue. He looked much more old and shaken than the last time I saw him. It seemed like he just got out of Tartarus or something. "If it isn't the Asian girl." Carl continued.

"I thought I got rid of you." I said through my teeth.

"Oh you speak English now? I'm surprised. Well, you were about to get me. But it's a good thing I managed to teleport away, before you even got the chance." he chuckled.

The Minotaur was starting to piss me off. "Alright, talk! I know you want something."

"Well, I do. But before that..." soon, we heard loud footsteps. We turned to see more Minotaurs surrounding us.

"Not cool, man! Not cool." whimpered Rook.

"Hey, quit the act. Get on with it!" Carl yelled. _Who was he referring to?_ I thought.

I began looking around, watching out for any Minotaur approaching us. However, not a single bull-headed freak came near. I kept looking around, while Rip began humming.

"Rip, man! This is no time to hum yo!" Rook snapped. But Mr. Suave did not listen, he just kept on humming.

He kept on humming and I suddenly felt like I was injected with a sedative, and my eyelids became heavy. "Wha-what's going on?" the satyr asked, letting out a yawn. I then realized it was all Rip's doing. Before I could stop him, I fell to the ground, and I succumbed to sleep.

What just happened? Simple, I was deceived.


	16. Chapter 15: Scheme of a Witch

First thing I saw: darkness...

First thing I heard: dripping water...

_Where was I?_

The second thing I saw: a damp hard room...

Second thing I heard: the movement of chains.

Wasn't it obvious? I was locked up in the cellar. Luckily, I was not alone.

"Burn, man. What just happened?" Rook groaned.

"Rook? You alright?" I asked. I was about to go to him, but the manacles on my wrists kept me restrained.

"Yeah... hey, where's Rip?" he asked, looking around.

The door creaked open. It was Carl, paying us a visit. Rook and I immediately gave him a death glare.

"Mistress is here to see you." he said, standing up really straight. Then somebody from behind pushed him aside.

"I'll take it from here." a voice of a woman snapped. The cryptic woman wore a black cloak, and she had a hoodie covering her face. She was silent for a while, like she was studying us very well. Soon, I heard footsteps coming from behind. Rip then appeared right beside her.

"Rip, man! We thought you were a goner, yo!" Rook cried. But Rip did not answer.

Rook looked at his friend with a sad and confused expression. "What's with you, man? Say something!" the satyr begged.

"That's pointless, you insignificant satyr." the woman said, bluntly.

"You're controlling him, aren't ya? Well excuse me ol' lady! You can't fool mah buddy like that! No-"

"Oh, she's _not_ controlling me." Rip interrupted. The satyr's mouth dropped.

"Then..._what in Olympus' name are ya doing over there?"_

"I knew it," I began. "You are one of them."

"Eve! What trash are ya spitting yo?" Rook panicked.

"The girl is right," the woman said. "He is actually one of my spies."

Soon the mysterious woman removed her cloak. When she did, she looked like the gothic wife of Frankenstein. She wore black lipstick, had thick black rings of eyeliner surrounding her bloodshot eyes, and her hair looked dark, frizzy and completely messy. Her dress was also black tattered. Basically, everything about this woman was plain dark.

"You're..." Rook stammered. "Y-you're... P-pasipha-ae..." _Wait, Pasiphae? As in, the Pasiphae of Crete? The wife of King Minos? You've got to be kidding me! _

"That's right, Satyr. I am the immortal child of the sun-god, Helios." she said with pride in her voice. "You just encountered my experiments."

"The army of Minotaurs?" I guessed.

"Why yes. All of them, including Carl, are mere copies of The First Minotaur."

"You... you bewitched King Minos. You were the one who bore the first Minotaur in Daedalus' Labyrinth." I said, accusingly.

"Yes that's me, daughter of Athena." she said, smirking. "That's right, I predicted that of your arrival. That's why I brought Rip out there and act like some random son of Aphrodite to spy on your stupid little camp."

"Wait, I don't understand." I said, slowly shook my head.

"Well, before I got to camp... I was already claimed." Rip started to explain. "It was not that flirty love goddess who claimed me. It was none other than Peitho, the goddess of persuasion. Before I was found, Pasiphae found me and trained me. Soon she gave me a mission to act like a hopeless demigod until a satyr from camp finds me. When Rook took me in, I decided to disguise myself as a son of Aphrodite."

When I heard what Rip put in plain words, I felt the impulsive urge to vomit. He was actually the son of the persuasion goddess, and I was her in my dream. The thought of it made me sick.

Rip lied to me about everything. About being sorry, the friendship he wanted to have, the kiss he nearly gave-oh! To think I almost kissed the jerk! It was all an unbelievable, cruel lie. It was like dealing with Takeshi, again. Only, it hurt even more. Well, that's what they all say, isn't it?

"My mission was to simply get to know Camp Half-Blood," the traitor continued. "However, Carl had to expose himself. I had no choice but to volunteer in that quest, and make sure that Carl was not caught. So I decided to finish his dirty work."

"What dirty work?" I asked.

"Remember Eris' golden apple? The one that brought about the Trojan War?" Pasiphae asked. "Well... no one knew what happened to it after Aphrodite took it." I said nothing.

"Well, I made a pact with Eris because she needed my expertise to track it down."

"Wait, I'm not getting any of this." Rook said, with a confused look.

Pasiphae rolled her eyes and turned to me. "It was Carl who was supposed to look for it. The search went beyond American borders. It suddenly appeared in Japan. According to him, the apple was claimed by an old man."

"That's why he attacked my home." I said, gnashing my teeth.

"Why yes, dear." she said. "This cowardly Minotaur had to bolt away just when he was close to achieving his objective! I guess I was so lucky to have Rip finishing the job."

"Not only that, Eve." Rip said. "It was not Carl who killed your dear father. The old fool can't even squash a bug! Since we could not afford any witnesses, I had no choice... but to kill the old man, myself."

My eyes widened, and I felt like I got stabbed on the back. _All this time... the murderer of my father was just under my nose! Why did I not perceive that? _I thought, with tears rolling down my eyes.

"Well, I couldn't use my javelin. Celestial bronze does not affect mortals, so I used one of those filthy _sai's_, instead." Rip continued.

"You..." I scowled. "After all this time... It was you... YOU MURDERED MY FATHER!"

"But how, man? You were with us when we got to Japan!" Rook pointed out.

"I persuaded you guys not to notice me. That's how!" Rip answered, shamelessly.

"You... MONSTER_! How could you do this?"_ I yelled at him, already bawling. I would've already beaten the hell out of him, if it weren't for the chains that bound my wrists.

"Oh hush now, dear. It was all for the best. We needed the golden apple, and your daddy would not give it to us." Pasiphae said, sarcastically.

"What do you with the golden apple, anyway?" I asked, infuriated.

"Well, it's not me who wants it. It is Eris who wants it back." she said, going to Rip. "Rip, dear... you know what to do." he then nodded and walked towards me.

"Okay, now what?" I asked, glaring at him.

"Well, Carl said he did get the apple. Unfortunately, it was snatched from him by Rook." Rip explained. "I searched the satyr, but he was clean. So I wondered... where could the apple be?"

I slowly walked backwards, while he continued to step towards me. Soon enough, my back reached the wall. Rip punched the wall beside me, and gave me a dangerous expression. "Alright, Eve. Hand it over." he demanded, in a monotonous tone.

"What?" I asked, tightening my eyes.

"Don't play dumb with me, I know you've got the box."

"The box?" Rook said, slowly blinking his eyes. "Shoot! I remember now! I've got the box, Rip! It's me you want!"

"Forget it, pal. It's not with you anymore." Rip retorted, still focused on me.

"I don't know what you're talking about." I said, holding up my chin.

"Oh really?" he said, slowly moving his hand to my hip. The moment he did, I kicked him in the gut. He backed up, and winced in pain.

"Stay away from me, you sick pervert." I warned.

"Now don't make this difficult, baby..." he said, trying to rationalize.

"You're not getting away with this..."

"Come on, just hand over the apple and this will all be over."

"I thought you were my friend!"

"Just give me the apple..."

When he tried to get closer again, I raised my left leg to kick him once more. Unfortunately, he grabbed it and continued to inch closer to me. I tried kicking him with my other leg, but he grabbed it too. While I was struggling, he reached out his hand to search in my pockets. _If only my wrists weren't chained_. I thought, hopelessly.

He was about to search my back pockets, but stopped. He then looked at my boots, which he grabbed. He placed his hand on my right boot and started removing it. By the time he removed it, I quickly kicked him on the chin. Rip fell to the ground, and massaged his inflicted jawline.

I was about to kick him again, but he grabbed my bare leg. I tried doing the same move with my other leg, but he was too fast. He got a hold of my other boot and did not waste any time in pulling it off. When he finally got my other boot, he reached inside and grabbed the green box. Rip then gave it to the witch.

"Nice work, Rip." Pasiphae said, giving him an evil grin.

I laid my back against the wall, and slowly knelt down on the ground. I bent my head down, in hopeless defeat.

"Awww, don't cry now dear." Pasiphae said, trying to sound like a pitiful mother. "Both of you are not just gonna sit here, cooped up all day. I've got a lot of things in store for you."

The Clone Minotaurs unchained and dragged us out then they followed Pasiphae. I kept my head down as the Minotaurs took me to my end.

First of all, I was so stupid. I actually fell for all of the lies and persuasions that Rip gave me. Also, I could not believe that I actually allowed myself to go through this, again. Because of my weak perception, Rook and I were going to die. A whole lot of innocent people and demigods are going to get hurt, and it was going to be all my fault.

When we reached a fork road, Rook and I got separated. The satyr kept calling me out, but I just ignored him. Why did he still call out to me, when I actually messed up this quest?

"You seem relaxed, my dear." Pasiphae said, teasingly. "Well, since you're a child of Athena... I've came up with a special treatment just for you. No need to worry about your satyr friend, though. He is also going to undergo something worthwhile."

The Minotaur tossed me in a really dark room. But this room was not normal; it did not have any floor. Because of that, I fell into an endless pit; at least I thought I was.

I suddenly landed at something thin and sticky. It was not the ground level or a floor, but it was like sticky string. Also, I was not alone. I heard something growling in the darkness.

Soon, I saw four red eyes, and it growled once again. The sticky string started to shake as it came closer to me. Suddenly lights opened from above, and I was able to see clearly what was going on. I was trapped in a web with a gigantic black widow spider.

"Have fun, darling!" Pasiphae shouted from above, letting out an evil laugh.

Out of the blue, I recalled the constraint between my mother and a girl named _Arachne_.


	17. Chapter 16: The Unforeseen Hero

I would like to call out to my mother and say, _"Hey mom! Guess what? I'm stuck with Arachne, the one who defeated you so badly in weaving that you had to turn her into a spider! Now she wants revenge and wants to kill me!"_

I was certain that it was really Arachne who was in front of me. The spider looked at me with its vicious eyes, and they were telling me that my mother will pay for what she has done. Usually, I'd leave a soft spot for spiders and release them into the wild, but I knew right away that I would need a life-size newspaper to get rid of a vengeful spider.

Arachne did not waste any time in assaulting me. The black widow jumped, causing me to spring in the air. I then fell on its abdomen, and I hopped off. When I was back at the web, I found a skeleton, half- wrapped in silk. It was unmistakable that I was not the only one in here.

I saw an old sword that was made of celestial bronze. When Arachne started to turn around, I quickly took the sword and tried to scurry away. But, there was a slight problem.

The silk of the web was very sticky that escaping from it was a hassle. When the spider got closer, I swung the bronze sword and it inched away. "That's right, fear the sword." I threatened.

I was so busy swinging the sword that I did not noticed that I missed a step and slipped down. I ended up hanging with one hand clutched to the sturdy spider silk and a pool of hot lava was waiting for me, underneath. This gave a window of opportunity for the spider to finish me off.

Arachne approached me and placed one of its legs on my struggling hand. I could feel its claws going into my skin, and man did they hurt. I grunted to raise the sword, and without realizing it, I was able to cut off the tip of its leg. The black widow spider then growled in pain and crawled away, which gave me a chance to do a strange stunt that helped me to go back up in the web.

While Arachne cried over her cut leg, I thought of an escape plan. I looked up and stared at the door to freedom, and a strategy suddenly came up to my mind.

_First things first_: Grab the opponent's attention. "Hey! Arachne!" I called out. The spider then looked at me, and lunged towards me. The web started to move again, and it gave me a chance to shake myself off and jump.

_Phase two_: Spiders make different types of webs. If Arachne is that desperate to get to me, then she'll find a way to get me. When I was in mid-air, the spider turned around and shot silk at me. Luckily, it missed me by a few inches. Moreover, the type of silk she used was not sticky and it was stretchy, so I was able to hang on to it. However, Arachne made a couple of more non-sticky silky threads and started to climb up, as well.

Finally, I looked at the door, which lacked a knob. I looked at my sword, and thought of Physics. Eventually, I started to swing around with the thread I was holding on to. I was only a couple of meters away from the door, and if I swing at an exact perimeter then I would be able to fly to that door before Arachne would even trap me.

I did my final swing, and placed myself in a long jump position. _Here goes nothing, mother... if you want me to win then make this work._ I prayed, reluctantly. When Arachne bared its venomous fangs at me, I sprang a long jump towards the door.

The whole scene almost looked like I was flying. I was only doing what Michael Jordan or a drastic chicken would do, flying a temporary flight to victory. I was getting closer to the door and I prepared the sword I borrowed from the old skeleton, and hoped for the better.

When I was already centimetres away from my freedom, I raised my sword and pierced the wood of the door. I did it. I finally got to the door. The only problem left was that there was no doorknob. So how was I supposed to get out? In addition to the situation at hand, Arachne was already climbing the walls and was fast approaching.

I tried creating a huge whole into the door so I could create my getaway. Cutting through the wood took forever, and the spider was getting closer. I severed more on the wood, until a miracle happened; the door went wide open and someone pulled me away from the dark prison. The masked hero then closed the door, and tossed the old celestial bronze sword to me.

The whole rescue took me by surprise. Here I was, staring at the violet riding hood who had the guts to rescue me. _What was with Greeks and cloaks nowadays?_ I thought.

I stood up, cleaned my outfit, and looked at the cloaked figure. As I said, the person wore a violet cloak and stared at me ever since I got salvaged from the clutches of Arachne. When I was gazing upon the stranger, he or she extended out his or her arm, dropping my boots in front of me.

I cleared my throat. "Uhm, thanks." I said, putting them on. But the stranger just nodded and turned to leave.

"Wait!" I shouted. The enigmatic individual halted and turned back to me. "May I know who you are?" I asked, courteously.

The stranger stood there for a while, and then started to remove the hood. The mysterious being was revealed to be a woman; a beautiful woman, to be exact. Compared to Pasiphae, her face glowed with kindness and tranquillity. The eyes were also serene and sincere.

"Uhmm sorry, but even if you just show your face to me I still don't know who you are." I said, apologetically.

The women started to giggle and smile. "My apologies. I am Ariadne. Wife of Dionysus, daughter of Pasiphae and King Minos of Crete." I looked at her in awe. The ex-lover of the hero Theseus was actually right before me, and she just helped me flee from Arachne!

"Oh my... You were the one who helped Theseus escape the labyrinth." I said.

Her face then saddened at my statement. Without warning, I brought to mind that things did not go too well with the Hero who maimed the Minotaur of Pasiphae. "I'm sorry for bringing that up." I said, earnestly.

She raised her hand, maintaining her calm look. "It's alright, dear one. The feelings I had for Theseus is nothing but faint memory, now." she said, reassuringly.

"But what are you doing here?"

"I'm tired of my mother's tricks. First, she bewitched my father, now she has joined forces with Eris and the other minor gods. This must be stopped, especially for my husband's sake."

"Wait... what do you mean by Eris and the other minor gods? What's going on, exactly?"

"I'll explain along the way. Right now, we must save your satyr friend and head to Olympus before it is too late."

As we rushed to save Rook, I learned that the minor gods are starting to rebel, and are driving the principal gods in Olympus crazy. Also, Pasiphae and Eris intend to use the golden apple iPod to tempt them once again. These two things made my brain cells scream.

"This is all insane! Why the golden apple?" I asked, panting.

"Eris tried to bribe them with Pandora's Pithos. Luckily, that did not work. Now, Eris called my mother for help and now they have the golden apple as back-up." Ariadne explained.

We arrived at the room where Rook was being tortured. I could tell he was suffering since he was pleading the Minotaurs to let him go and that he did not taste good. I was about to open the door until Ariadne stopped me.

"Not now, dear. You must come up with a plan." she suggested.

"Ah! Please! Satyrs cause bad indigestion for Minotaurs, yo!" Rook yelped.

"Alright, I'm thinking. I'm thinking..." I said, under my breath. Soon, something struck me.

"You don't mind being a distraction, would you?" I asked.

(O u O)

Ariadne put on her hood again, and went inside the cellar Rook was in.

"Who goes there?" boomed a Minotaur.

"Be still, minions of Pasiphae. I happen to be the new guard that your mistress has hired." Ariadne said, coolly.

"You're not a Minotaur." scoffed another.

While Ariadne was busy with them, I silently entered the room. I detected my _sai's_ and Annabeth's backpack at the left, so I immediately went there. Once I grabbed the items, I directed my sight towards to Rook, who was all tied-up over a boiling pot.

When Rook finally saw me, he grinned and tried to say my name, but it was a good thing I signalled him to keep his mouth shut. Next, I waved the bronze sword at him, and he quickly understood.

I took the old sword and threw it to Rook. He managed to take a hold of it and started to cut the ropes that bound him. He nearly fell into the pot, however. Fortunately he did a split, which made him balance at the edges of the simmering container. The bad news was that his stunt made a shrill commotion that the Minotaurs finally turned towards us.

"Uhhh... Eve?" The satyr said, uneasy. I nodded, with my eyes focused on the pack of beasts.

"Run!" he shouted. All the Minotaurs then headed towards us.

I took a hold of Rook and ran towards them. He started to ask if I was crazy in an anxious tone. I did not pay attention to his whining and approached the Minotaurs head on. When we were nearly imminent, I yelled "_Rook, glide_!"

"_What? Are you crazy_?" he still asked.

"NOW!" When we were really near them, we glided in between the Minotaurs. They, on the other hand, kept on charging until they crashed into the pot and a whole lot of other stuff, at the other side of the room.

"Alright!" exclaimed Rook, giving me a high-five. It was not over yet; Carl blocked the exit, with Ariadne trapped in his bulky hand.

"Nowhere to run, demigod." he snorted.

I glared at him.

"Any last words?" he mocked.

"Yeah... _this is for my father!_" I yelled, throwing the old sword at him. Carl got pierced in the eye, and screamed in agony. This caused him to release Ariadne. Rook and I caught her in time. We nodded at each other and ran to the way out.


	18. Chapter 17: Discontinuity of Chaos

**Author's Note: **Hey! So sorry for not updating this story for such a long time. I've been busy with school. But now the third grading period of the school year is over, and Christmas break just started... I guess I can do whatever I want. Haha! Anyways...here is the next chapter of Apple of Eve. I hope you are enjoying it, so far!

eggsandmarshmallows

* * *

><p>To my amazement, Pasiphae's lair was underneath the reflecting pool of the Lincoln Memorial, this whole time.<p>

There was one problem: how do we get to Olympus?

"Olympus is in the topmost floor of the Entire State Building, which is in New York." I pointed out. "We're miles away. There's no way we could reach them."

I was about to lose hope again, until I saw a pure white pegasus and a golden chariot. My jaws dropped; not only was it all unexpected, but I felt a sudden wave of fear going through my veins. I did not want to ride a winged-horse to one of the greatest cities in the world.

"I followed one of my mother's minions on this chariot. Now let us go." Ariadne said.

She and Rook Immediately climbed aboard, but I just stayed put. The princess of Crete gave me a peculiar look. "Uhmm... are you all right, dear?" she asked with a concerned tone.

"Yeah come on, man! We've got gods to save!" Rook added, impatiently.

I suddenly became dumbstruck. I did not know how to tell them how much I feared horses! "Horses hate me." was all I said.

The rapping satyr rolled his eyes, went down the chariot, and dragged me by the hand. "Don't be ridiculous, yo!" he snapped.

"No! I possibly can't ride... _that!_"

The horse neighed, insulted.

My eyes grew out of fear. I pointed at the chariot and yelled, "See? It hates me!"

"That is just plain silly, man! Now come on." Rook said, still dragging me.

"No! I can't!" I protested.

"Yes you can!"

"_No!_"

"_Yes!_"

The whole picture looked like a mother forcing her spoiled-brat child to get back into her stroller. Rook kept on dragging me into the chariot, while I was struggling and whining. I was not able to see what Ariadne was doing, but I was pretty sure that she was either engrossed or annoyed by our juvenileness. Eventually, the satyr won the match.

"There! Now that was not so hard!" Rook said, panting after placing me inside the chariot.

I just stood in the chariot, pale and petrified.

"Alright! Here we go!" Ariadne said, moving the reins. Soon, we moved at an exceedingly quick speed.

I closed my eyes really tight and clutched to Ariadne throughout the entire trip, even though it only took around twenty seconds to get there. The whole chariot ride felt like riding a straight roller coaster ride, and I hated those! It was a good thing that it was really quick and that it only felt like removing a bandage from hairy skin.

I finally opened my eyes, and I saw the very tall Empire State Building. My blood was still racing when I admired the structure of the high edifice. Rook had to shake me awake and slap me as a reminder of the task at hand.

"C'mon!" Rook groaned, dragging me into the building. But we were blocked by a Clone Minotaur.

I muttered a curse and turned my attention towards Ariadne. "Try manipulating The Mist and get all the mortals leave the vicinity." I told her. She nodded and started to work.

Behind the Clone Minotaur, we heard a low chuckle. Rip slowly came out. I glared at the eyes of the traitor. "All this time, you lied to me." I said, harshly.

"Everything except for my past." Rip clarified.

"How could you?"

"Like I said; the minor gods need justice."

I continued to glare. _"And did you think killing my father would actually lead them to justice?"_ I yelled.

He shook his head and avoided my question. "Eve, we all know you're mad at your mother." he continued. "Now why don't you join us? Together, we will let those Olympian gods pay and we'll stay friends. I'm still interested in you." _He was offering me to join their side? A side wherein I could finally get back at my mother?_

"No Eve! He's using his persuading powers on you!" Rook warned, but the Minotaur started to chase him away.

"Come on, Eve... join me." Rip begged. I looked down realizing Rook was right; he was using his persuading powers on me, and it was real powerful stuff.

We were silent for a while, until I got the guts to look at him in the eye again. I knew what to say. "Whether I like it or not...Athena... is still my mother..." I said. "What you're doing now is not justice. You're still going to hurt more lives._ So I will never_ EVER _join you!_"

Rip's calm and teasing expression changed; his eyes widened and his nose flared. He raised his javelin at me and tried to pierce me with it. I dodged his move and we 'danced'.

When we fought, I could finally see why the Hellhounds at New Castle were easily defeated; Rip was one good fighter. He showed no hesitation and he was very quick at blocking my attacks. All I did was block the javelin and made sure that stick of his did not come near my body. Ariadne managed to ward off the innocent bystanders, but she was nowhere to be found. Rook, on the other hand, kept running from the Clone Minotaur. I sighed, hoping he would come up with an idea soon.

Evading Rip's attacks eventually made me tired. No matter how hard I tried in attacking him with my _sai's,_ he was just too strong for me. He noticed my distraught expression and decided hit me with his elbow. This made me fall to the ground.

An evil grin splashed across his face. "I won't make this offer again: JOIN ME." he said. "I'm still interested in you, Eve."

I smirked. _"Never."_

My response earned me a punch in the gut. I could feel blood stream around my mouth.

More blood escaped through my lips when I spoke. "Where is Pasiphae? Where is….. the iPod?" I asked, feeling stupid. I was being beat to a pulp, and I still asked for that.

He just laughed at me and he once again lifted his javelin, and was about to stab me to death. My life was about to draw to a close until Rip got blasted by lightning. He screamed in pain and dropped his weapon. The next thing I knew, Rip fell to the ground.

I glanced to where the lightning came from, and first thing I saw was a familiar face. It was Rain Weathers, holding a small lightning bolt on his left hand. The son of Zeus looked at me with shock in his eyes. Shockingly, he recognized me. "What are _you_ doing here?" he asked, with his face giving me the _you're-not-supposed-to-be-here _look.

Rook suddenly entered the scene before I could even answer. To everyone's surprise, he was riding on the Minotaur's back and he was having fun doing so. "Wooohooo!" he hollered.

I saw Ariadne come out of the Empire State Building, just in time to see what was going on. _So that's where she went. I guess she called for help._ I thought.

Her eyes widened at the sight of the controlled Minotaur. She decided to ignore it and help me up. "Ariadne, this was your back-up plan?" Rain asked.

"I thought you might need help." Ariadne explained.

The dark-haired boy smirked. "I didn't need help. Besides, I stopped this immortal from entering Olympus. She held this in her hand." I turned to see the golden iPod gleaming in his hands.

In a blink of an eye, I immediately stood up – ignoring the pain that shot through my back—snatched the iPod from him, dropped it on the ground, and stabbed it will all my might. Soon, the Golden Apple was shattered into pieces.

Rain looked at me in disbelief. "Whoa, we get it. You hate music." He shuddered.

I glared at him. "Where is Pasiphae? The immortal you speak of."

Rain pointed at the entrance of the Empire State Building and I saw Lucius Winter dragging Pasiphae, who looked beaten up. The son of Hades caught the sight of me and instantly gave me a smirk. "Nice face." He said, blankly.

"She was my opponent." I replied.

"Sucks for you, then." Lucius said. I just rolled my eyes.

"What do you intend to do with her, Lucius?" Rain asked.

The purple-eyed teenager shrugged. "Take her to the Fields of Punishment, I guess?"

Rain just nodded and his eyes suddenly grew bigger. He looked like he almost forgot something. "Hey, where's Rip?" I looked around, noticing that the traitor was _gone._

I turned to Rook and Ariadne, begging for an answer. Rook looked at me with a troubled look on his face. "I'm sorry, man. I thought I saw him lying there just a second ago, yo." He said. Ariadne just shook her head. Apparently, she did not notice Rip leaving, either. _How did he leave? He was blasted by lightning, for crying out loud!_

"Wait, are you saying Rip was here?" Lucius asked.

"Yeah, and he tried to kill Asian Chick over here." Rain said.

I closed my eyes and clenched my fists. "My name is Eve! Not Asian Chick!" After that, I explained to the boys who Rupert Gracey really was. I also told them about the Golden Apple iPod I just destroyed.

The boys seemed to ignore my temper and focused more on the _Rip-is-a-traitor_ part. "Rip, huh? I knew it." Lucius said, coolly.

I looked at him. "What do you mean?"

Rain told me that he got off a quest with Lucius winter and that Sophie girl, a couple of months ago; and it did not go well. From what I understood, Sophie got into trouble and Winter tried to save her; and he got severely injured for it. They also said that Hecate, the goddess of magic, was also a part of this dispute. At Olympus, they said that the gods were trying to make Eris talk about the rebellious minor gods, while Melinoe and Momus – the gods who recently took action- were nowhere to be found. Beyond that, Rain did not know anything, especially about what's currently going on at Camp. They were just there because they received Ariadne's stress call.

"I asked about Rip, _not _the rebellious minor gods. I already know about that." I said, sternly.

The son of Zeus exhaled quite heavily. "We're getting to that," he said, trying his best not to be irritated. "To be honest, I never expected Rupert Gracey to be like this. Sure he was annoying, but I never thought he would be like Luke Castellan."

"Luke Castellan?"

He sighed again and reluctantly explained the story to me. Soon I got what he meant. Luke Castellan was a son of Hermes. He was a dear friend to Thalia and Annabeth. Little did they know that he betrayed them and served for a titan called Kronos. In the end, he died for the sake of his Camp Half-Blood friends. So in a way, he returned to the good side in the end. I began to wonder if Rip would do the same thing, too. I shook my head at the crazy idea and turned to Rain, whose eyes were filled with hate and disappointment. "Lucius, you were right about him." Rain said.

"Right about what?" I asked. But Lucius turned away from us.

Rain sighed and continued explaining. "He was probably the only guy who was suspicious about Rip. I think he told me that he would soon send out Hellhounds or... _Furies_ to get him, one day."

My blood began to race through my veins. I suddenly remembered the early monsters we fought; The Furies in the bus and the Hellhounds at New Castle. Lucius Winter was a son of Hades, and those creatures came from the Underworld. I guess this all meant one thing: Lucius Winter sent those monsters to target Rip. But hey, those furies were also from the underworld. Why did they attack me? Oh right, my mother interfered with their hunt. _That's why!_

But I could not help but storm towards Winter. "You…. _You disrupted my quest!"_ I accused. He looked at me, acting like nothing was happening. My arms were already telling me to strangle him to death. Before I did that, pain surged through my brain. I felt like I was shocked by the electricity. My head and ears became fuzzy, and my vision was disappearing.

I could only catch glimpses of Lucius and his stunned face, and I could barely hear Rook calling out to me.

I also could have sworn seeing the gagged Pasiphae murmuring something. Ah, I nearly forgot about her. But what was she trying to say? My guess was…_If you continue being part of this, you will surely die._


	19. Chapter 18: A Mother to Daughter Talk

I woke up in an incredibly large marble room. Heck, everything around here looked like they were made out of marble! The room was even bigger than the Lincoln Memorial itself!

But in the middle of the room, though, was my mother.

My posture became tensed and my eyes brought out a glare. Athena looked at me as if she knew how I was going to react. After fifteen years, I was finally face-to-face with my mother; and it was becoming awkward.

"Hello, dear." My mother greeted.

"What do you want? Is this a dream? It better be." I asked, coldly.

"Easy now." she soothed. "I just want to say that I'm so proud of you."

"But I let Rip get away. And that son of Hades was the one who took care of Pasiphae. So technically, I did not do anything."

She shook her head. "But you made it this far. You used your leadership skills and your intellect, very well. You also destroyed the Golden Apple. And I can't help but be so gratified."

She placed her hand on my shoulder. I closed my eyes and gently shoved it off. "Uhh... thanks."

Her face softened even more. Her grey eyes looked solemn and mysterious, at the same time. "You're still upset about your father aren't you?"

I scoffed. "_Upset? More like mad, infuriated_! You're the goddess of wisdom, for crying out loud! And you did not think of the consequences before you got... _comfortable_ with my dad?" My booming voice was so strident that it echoed throughout the room. I bet my power of speech went outside.

"Well it's not everyday that I hear a child being upset about her parents being in-love." the goddess said.

"I've known dad my whole life; and he was a good man."

"He certainly was. I've never met anyone like him."

"_That's what they all say_! My point is that he did not deserve to die! He did not deserve a child like me! If it weren't for _you_, he would still be in Harvard teaching History!"

My mother just looked at me, sadly.

"Arrgh! I don't get why you gods have to be so _irksome_! You treat your demigod children like dirt, yet you still go around the world and fall in love with mortals, and break their hearts afterwards!"

"I urged your father to go to Japan, because I wanted both of you to be safe. I did not claim you at birth, for your own protection."

"Well you did not do such a great job!"

My mother sighed, and reached for something in her pocket. She went towards me, holding out a silver box. "Here. It's about time that you used this." she said.

I cringed, fearing that it would be Pandora's Box disguised as an iPhone (and all its apps would bring chaos to the world). But I gave my mother a resentful glare. "Giving me a present is not going to make up for the fifteen years you've missed." I pointed out, bluntly.

"Just take it, dear."

I hesitantly took the box and removed the lid. Surprisingly, inside was a silver digital camera. I took it out from the box, and admired the contraption. I've always wanted a camera ever since I was ten years old. I looked at my mother, who was giving me a small smile.

"Not only can it take normal pictures and videos, but it can picture an object's past. It can also capture the truth of something." she explained.

"How does this work?" I asked, giving her a chance.

"You're a smart girl. I'm sure you'll learn its controls pretty soon."

I stared at the camera."...thanks."

"Look, I know you're extremely angry with me. But please understand that I wanted Hideki to be safe as much as you do. He was such an extraordinary man; I've really never meant anyone like him. I'm deadly serious. I really loved your father, very much."

She was telling the truth. My father did make an impact on my mom's life. I guess that's what irritating about love; sometimes you just can't help yourself.

"Also, I know you are greatly upset about that Rip boy." she added. "A word of advice? You deserve better than him."

"I know that."

"Well, I think that's all I wanted to say to you."

"What now?" I raised an eyebrow at her.

"Close your eyes."


	20. Chapter 19: Back

I woke up, welcomed by the sunlight peeking from the curtains of the window across me. I slowly sat up, feeling minor pains panging in my brain.

"You seem to experience a sudden concussion." A voice said. Annabeth.

"What happened to me?" I asked, massaging my temples.

"Let's see," she said, cupping her chin. "Lucius sent Pasiphae to the Fields of Punishment, I think. Ariadne is around Olympus, and the boys carried you here."

I rolled my eyes. "Aw, great." I said in a sarcastic tone.

Annabeth laughed, not noticing my mood swing. "Come on, let's eat."

I was at the pavilion, trying to enjoy a simple breakfast of French croissant and strawberry jam with the other Athena kids. Sadly, having a peaceful breakfast after having a stressful quest was not possible. The Athena campers could not stop bombarding me with questions regarding my adventure.

Thankfully, Annabeth dragged me away and told me that Chiron wanted to talk to me. I've never thought I would be this excited to talk to a horse.

When I reached the big house, I already spotted Chiron in his wheelchair form, sipping on a cup of black coffee. When he saw me, he gave me his usual hospitality and I decided to take it and sat on the couch.

"I was told that Rook was still not yet up, ever since you two arrived last night." he started. "Now, I would like you to tell me everything that happened, especially about the Golden Apple and Rip Gracey."

I sighed heavily, and told him. Sometimes, telling the hard parts gave me constant lumps on the throat. It was so hard to let it all out that I nearly felt the urge to vomit my breakfast on Chiron's priceless rug. But, I knew that it was not the brightest solution.

When I was done explaining, he gave me a nod. "I see... I guess there are so many things in store for all of us." he started to say, while I stared at my orange Camp Half-Blood shirt. I sighed. _I am one of them. _"Also, Lucius was right about him."

"I kinda figured." I mumbled.

"Excuse me?" Chiron raised an eyebrow.

I shook my head. "Nothing."

The Centaur's face softened. Just like Athena. "Then I guess it was hard for you."

"What are you talking about?" I asked, looking away.

"You know what I mean. I'm sure you couldn't bear the fact that Rip betrayed us all."

My eyes tightened. "No, he and I weren't really that close. It's not like I expected him to be my friend and all." _Lies._

"Really now?"

"Yes. Now... are we done here?" _Because I can't take it anymore._

"Uhmm...yes."

"Then it was nice talking to you, sir." I stood up from my seat, and stormed out of the Big House. I did not want to appear rude to him, so I guess leaving the place was the only thing I came up with.

I ran to the lakeside, and I exhaled heavily when I finally reached the lake's shore. When I expelled my breath from my diaphragm, it all felt like I let out a silent scream. But I was not the type to create drama and cry like a baby. I just... throw things, when I get upset. _Okay, I am wimp, so what_? I couldn't keep all the negative energy inside of me.

I kept skipping pebbles across the lake, until I felt the sudden urge to throw a huge rock. But if I did that, the naiads would really let me have it, so I decided not to.

This little scenario suddenly reminded me of something. That's right; this was the place where I punched the traitor. I must say, the memory felt good, but it also hurt. I'd never expected an over conscious, laidback, suave, persuasive, bone-headed guy would be a devious traitor.

To make things worse, I nearly fell for his persuasions. I was beginning to trust him, beginning to look at him as a good friend. Then he suddenly succumbed me to my doom. Like I said, it was like Takeshi all over again; only, it was more painful. But that's what every depressed girl would say, right?

If I were to summarize what happened to my life... then I guess I would put it this way: I lost my dad to a Minotaur named Carl. I was forced to be brought to this Greek camp and I learned that I'm a demigod. Finally, I went on a quest and one of my companions- whom I thought liked me, lied and turned out to be a traitor. To top it all off, my first encounter with my mother was tumultuous. A little messy, but it will do. The question is..._what happens now_?

I harked back to what Rip and I promised before he framed me. If he betrayed me then I would kill him. Well one thing's for sure….. this was not my last quest. This was just the beginning.

THE END... WELL NOT EXACTLY.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>Hello, all! Thank you so much for reading this fanfiction till the very end. Also, thanks for the reviews. It really means a lot. So here it is, the last chapter to the Apple of Eve. But it is not over yet! Please stay tune for the upcoming story, The Necromancer's Servant. More things shall be revealed in this sequel. Once again, thank you for the support!

eggsandmarshmallows.


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